As part of AFS-USA’s 75th Anniversary, we are pleased to announce May as Community Appreciation Month! This month, we are celebrating communities, organizations, and individuals who support AFS across the US. To help with this endeavor, we launched the AFS-USA 75th Anniversary Community Changemaker Awards.  

The theme of our 75th Anniversary is Your Story is Our Story: 75 Years of Creating Global Citizens. While it’s impossible to measure the impact AFS-USA continues to have in communities now and over the last 75 years, we know there are thousands of individuals and groups outside of AFS that support our work and mission in creating global citizens who help to build a more just and peaceful world.    

During the month of April volunteers submitted nominations of people, groups, organizations, and companies they partner with at the community level that support the work of volunteer teams and the AFS mission.  

We are pleased to announce the winners: 13 Community Changemakers from across the country. Learn more about them and find excerpts and summaries of their nominations below:  

• Einas Schifferle, community member who educates students on the Baha’i Faith, Amherst, NY
  • Western New York Team
  • Einas is a member of the Baha’i Faith who has met with AFS students for 12+ years, she opens her home to the students for lunch and shares about her faith and traditions. She is extremely enthusiastic and engaging with the students.  

• Fred Margulies, Vice President at Continental Envelope, Geneva, IL
  • Greater Illinois Team
  • The team connected with Fred three years ago when he hosted a pumpkin composting event at his community farm he manages with his family. After the event, he invited the students to visit his envelope factory, use their boardroom, and bought them Geneva’s famous ice cream. He also shared about his Jewish faith and answered students’ questions. Every year since, he has opened the factory for a tour, bought bagels and donuts while the group compost pumpkins, and treated the group to lunch.

• Hamburg Farmers’ Market / Southtowns Chamber of Commerce, Hamburg, NY
  • Western New York Team
  • The organization has welcomed the local team to have a booth free of charge for many spring and summer weekend events, where the team is able to share information about AFS to the local community.
  • https://www.southtownsregionalchamber.org/explore-hamburg/farmers-market/  

• Jim Ritter, Career & Education Fair Coordinator, Humboldt County, CA 
  • Northwest California Team  
  • Jim Ritter has been involved with creating opportunities for sharing AFS information to local junior high, high school, and college students for many years, including having AFS tables and AFS representatives sit on panels at events.  
  • “AFS is a group he now reaches out to, regardless of where he is working. He provides logistics, snacks, and advance notification of all events he coordinators or helps coordinate.”

• Metro Achievement Center (MAC) and Assistant Director, Gemma Cremers, Chicago, IL  
  • Greater Chicago Team 
  • The MAC and Gemma Cremers have welcomed the team to host numerous orientations over the years. The center has also partnered with AFS-USA on the Faces of America Scholarship Program to send students abroad. The MAC is part of the Midtown Educational Foundation, a nonprofit that guides low-income urban youth in Chicago along pathways of success.  
  • https://www.midtown-metro.org/metro-for-girls  

• Michael Martin, Executive Director of Native American Community Services of Erie and Niagara Counties, Inc. and Onondaga, Beaver Clan, Faithkeeper, Buffalo, NY 
  • Western New York Team  
  • Michael Martin first connected with the team 15 years ago. Dedicating time from his busy schedule to meet with Sponsored Programs students to share important aspects of the Native American culture and values. He provides his business card to all the students and encourages them to contact him with any questions or anything else they may need. He shares the documentary, Trail of Tears, with the students among other valuable information. He also invites the team to join the Thanksgiving multifaith service that happens the Monday prior to Thanksgiving every year.  
  • http://www.nacswny.org/  

• Mt. Holly Ski & Snowboard Resort, Holly, MI 
  • Michigan Team 
  • For the past 20 years, the team has held their annual ski outing for Metro Detroit at this facility. Mt. Holly has offered group discounts and sectioned off a portion of the snack area for the team to gather. Without the partnership of the resort, this annual event would not be possible.  
  • “You can imagine the smile on an AFSer’s face who has never seen snow on their first ski outing, riding the chair lift up the hill.” 
  • https://www.skimtholly.com/the-mountain/ 

• Muslim Community Center, Chicago, IL 
  • Greater Chicago Team
  • The MCC and the Interfaith Outreach Coordinator has supported the team over the years, beginning with holding a student/family potluck dinner in their community hall, where Sponsored Program students spoke about Islam and Hinduism to the families. The MCC has welcomed ALEX students for a presentation on Islam for an interfaith day, hosted an evening iftar for Sponsored Program students from Ohio and the local team.  
  • “On a personal note, the Muslim student I hosted last year was welcomed at the MCC during Ramadan. He went there to pray and then was allowed to complete his community service hours by serving other faithful a light meal after breaking the fast.” 
  • https://mccchicago.org/  

• The Office of Congressman Higgins (D), Buffalo, NY 
  • Western New York Team 
  • For the past 17 years Congressman Higgins Office Staff have welcomed Sponsored Program students and others to the office to educate on the role of congress to serve constituents and the community. The students are awarded an official certificate from the Congressman’s office. There are always two to three staffers who spend time with students and provide examples of how they serve the community.  
  • https://higgins.house.gov/ 

• The Stanley Center for Peace and Security and Program Officer Global Education, Krista Regennitter, Muscatine, Iowa 
  • Greater Illinois Team 
  • Special note: nominated twice! 
  • The Stanley Center was dedicated to working with AFS-USA to establish an Educator Exchange with teachers from Austria and Muscatine, Iowa. Program Officer of Global Education, Krista Regennitter, was vital to establishing AFS’ presence in Muscatine, helping to lay the groundwork for the current relationship with the high school, assisted with placing hosted students, and connecting people to volunteer with AFS-USA.  
  • “Krista is the progenitor of AFS’s presence in Muscatine. It was she who laid the groundwork for the current relationship with the high school. She had been directly responsible for the placement for whom I am a liaison. She did much of the work organizing the Austrian exchange. She got me involved in the first place.” 
  • “Their dedication to working with AFS to make the teacher exchange successful was evident in their setting up tours and discussions with staff at the University of Iowa, Kent Corporation, Muscatine Community College, The Pearl Button Factory, and many more.”  
  • https://stanleycenter.org/ 

• United Methodist Church of Geneva, Geneva, IL 
  • Greater Illinois Team 
  • For decades the Geneva United Methodist Church has let the team use space for orientations, made announcements about hosting, invited students to speak about their religions, and join other activities. During COVID, the Pastor joined a Zoom enrichment activity for virtual students. They have welcomed students to volunteer at the rummage sale and other events and many families from this church have hosted and become volunteers. 
  • https://genevaumc.org/ 

• Westfield Washington Public Library, Westfield, IN 
  • Greater Indiana Team 
  • The Westfield Washington Public Library has graciously allowed the team use of their spaces for the last five years. It is especially helpful during NSLY interview season, to help the team offer a central location to prospective students from all over the state   
  • https://wwpl.lib.in.us/  

• Women of Emanu-El, Milwaukee, WI 
  • Milwaukee Team
  • For over 60 years, this Women’s Group, which is part of Congregation Emanu-El B’ne Jeshurun, has hosted AFS Shabbat– an opportunity for students, volunteers, and host families to have a Sabbath dinner with a Jewish family and then attend a Reform Jewish service. Every year the WE group donates money, time, desserts, drinks, and flowers to organize and run the event. 
  • “Personally, this event is what led us to become a host family with AFS. After several years of meeting the students during dinners at our house, and hearing their thoughtful questions during the event, we knew that hosting would be an amazing experience–and it was!” 
  • From the synagogue newsletter: “In 2015, one Muslim student, who had attended our AFS Shabbat, later organized more than 1,000 Muslims to form a human shield around a synagogue in his home city of Oslo, offering symbolic protection for the city’s Jewish community, and sending a strong message of condemnation for a recent attack on a synagogue in neighboring Denmark.
  • Another AFS Shabbat alum, a student from Turkey, returned to his country with many new ideas and new questions in his head. During his first year in college, he organized a tolerance group inclusive of young people of all religions.”  
  • https://www.ceebj.org/

Thank you to all those who nominated and shared amazing stories from your communities! Winners will be recognized publicly by AFS-USA and will be presented with their awards from AFS-USA volunteers in the weeks to come.   

Congratulations to all of the winners. We are so grateful for your contributions to your communities and AFS-USA.