Everyone has dreams and aspirations to change the world ... · InfoTech has given us unprecedented power to access our global world. I feel empowered with the amount of information

The world we live in is rapidly changing. It is much different than the one our parents lived in at our age and there is even greater disparity from the world in which our grandparents lived. InfoTech has given us unprecedented power to access our global world. I feel empowered with the amount of information available to me, but I understand information without action is meaningless. People are really the great resource of the world that bring unity, solutions, and peace.

I am Ashton Atkinson; I am a junior from Washington State.

To the west a ferry shuttles to the picturesque San Juan

Islands. The Canadian border is a short distance north where

I enjoy snowboarding and international friends. Seattle, a big

city with all its trimmings, sits to the south. Nestled in the

middle is a rural farming community where I have sewn my

roots. My home, my family, my faith, and my experiences

define me.

I am a daughter, a granddaughter, a younger sister and an

older sister to five siblings. Growing up in a busy household

has taught me how to communicate, share, and contribute.

My faith helps define me. I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day

Saints (LDS). I’m a counselor and friend to many young girls. I have the opportunity

to speak in church and am comfortable being with those of other faiths and talking

about all forms of religion. I have helped lead youth groups in climbing and

backpacking expeditions in the Mount Baker backcountry. I participate in youth

conferences, bringing hundreds of diverse youth together focusing on learning,

leadership, and personal growth.

Many of my greatest life experiences center around

learning and service. I’m devoted to learning as much as I

can to become an informed citizen. Education will direct the

future and maintain our freedoms. Visiting Ground Zero has

taught me the importance of understanding other countries

and recognizing that throughout the world, we think very

differently from one another.

I study liberal arts at Skagit Valley Community College. Academically, I express what I’ve learned and think. Recently I publicly presented two global issues. I promoted Blake Mycoskie, the founder of TOMS shoes, who delivers one pair of shoes to impoverished countries for every pair purchased. I am participating in “One Day Without Shoes” to promote the awareness.

I also spoke on the nonprofit organization, Embrace, who designed an infant warmer to prevent low-birth-weight infant mortality in rural areas around the world.

Both non-profit organizations began with an explorer on a trip to learn something new about humanity, and both have resulted in extensive global giving. I have not yet discovered my mission, but believe that being selected to travel with this motivated group to Berlin could provide another key to my discovery. New places and faces generate the ideas that motivate us to help change the world for good.

Giving service is a big part in my life and has given me

much experience. I spent three weeks last July in Palmyra,

New York sharing my beliefs through performing. I have

traveled and studied early American pioneers and participated

in a four-day recreation of a handcart trek, dressed in a

petticoat and an apron. I had a taste of their hardships.

A historical adventure to Inca and Mayan ruins in Mexico,

Honduras, and Belize has helped me appreciate the sacrifices

of earlier civilizations who influence the way we track time,

write, and count.

This year I am going to Ecuador to care for

children living in an orphanage. While

there, we are helping to rebuild a portion

of their home. My goal is to help them feel

loved.

I express my identity by the unique versatile life I live, which is chalked full of as many experiences as I can acquire. I have siblings and friends that are mastering one thing, but I choose to embrace it all, this helps me to be a global citizen. I am an explorer who meets every opportunity like a challenge.

Last summer I ran the RAGNAR relay, a thirty

hour race through Utah’s Wasatch

Mountains, with a team of eleven other

runners. Achieving something hard as a team

revealed the potential that each of us have in

accomplishing trying feats.

I am not like any ordinary teenager. I listen to

audio books in the car instead of pop music. I

rock climb, exercise, and snowboard in my spare

time. I even own a unicycle. I can’t name many

sitcoms, but I love the classics. The solutions to

today’s global issues require thinking outside the

box.

I want my life to be associated with doing

good. My mission will be expressed by

service. I am the happiest when I am

handing out hamburgers to the homeless,

participating in free dental days, stepping

in for Santa in hundreds of ways at

Christmas, collecting supplies for

orphanages, assembling humanitarian

kits, managing food drives, and comforting

a crying baby. I will use the understanding

I receive from visiting Berlin to help

someone somehow.

Experiencing an educational tour to Berlin will shape my identity as a global

citizen by transporting me back to my roots. My great grandmother Martha

Schmidt has given me German heritage. She teaches me the clear lines

between right, and wrong. Her life of hard work, frugality, and firm

boundaries are part of me. I feel like Berlin will help provide a look into the

past as well as give me perspective on the future. The people of Germany

have a clear presence in the affairs of the world. As I said earlier, people are

really the great resource of the world, I want to become more familiar with

the people of Berlin.

I believe one person can make a

difference in the rapidly changing

world. Why not me? I am making a

difference in my backyard and often

outside of it. I want to see the world to

discover solutions, communicate

peace, and alleviate suffering. This is

my call to action.