Written by: Maggie Tirrell
My name is Maggie Tirrell and I am the 2014-2015 Alumni Association Scholarship Program intern. You may be wondering what that means and how I got there, but let me start with a bit of background information. I was born and raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma. From the time I was 5 years old, I studied French and loved it more and more every day. In fifth grade, I was given the opportunity to travel to France on an exchange program. I spent three weeks total with two different families; I attended school with my host sister and learned the language more in-depth. I continued French in middle school, where once again I was privileged to spend three weeks in France with yet another host family – learning the land, exploring famous landmarks, and furthering my language skills even more.
My high school experience was no different – I continued exploring the French language and culture and broadened my world views to include Belgium. This experience was unlike anything I could have imagined in my wildest dreams. The first three weeks went by relatively calmly – I traveled around a little with my host family, bonded with my new sisters. I had no idea what I was getting into. I had been invited to attend a Girl Guide’s summer camp with my host sisters, and I was expecting a typical camp like I had been to – cabins, toilets, showers – boy, was I wrong. The first thing I saw was a field with only a huge pile of timber. I was informed that we would be building our own tents (what they call a piloti) 2 meters off the ground! We assembled them using only the timber and rope. We used the rope to weave our own beds and underneath the tent; we were to create a kitchen table (once again woven with rope), a kitchen, and a living room with hammocks. Outside of that, we created a bathroom (well, just a toilet), a fire pit, and a trash and recycling center. I was already feeling overwhelmed when I was told that it was time to go on the hike. My first reaction was, “Oh cool! I get to see the Belgian countryside!” Well, I saw a lot more than I expected to. See, when they say hike, what they really mean is a three-day trek across the country. We walked 20 kilometers (about 10 miles) per day, using only a map and a compass. We took no tents, sleeping bags, pillows, anything like that. I met many interesting people along the way, seeing as when it was time to stop for the day, we began knocking at doors of houses to see if they would let us stay there! Many people were not very welcoming, so the first night we ended up staying at a different camp whose campers were also on their hike. The second night, we were slightly more fortunate. A couple allowed us to stay in the loft of their barn…with 25 Dutch cub scouts! The following morning, a nearby couple was nice enough to let us girls shower (first one in a week) and sent us off with some homemade bread and fresh fruit. The rest of camp was relatively normal – we cooked our own food, did team-building exercises, played games, sang songs, had campfire. This experience was so eye-opening for me to see how other countries did camp and what other countries include in this event.
In high school, I decided it was time to branch out even farther and visit a place where I did not speak the language. My destination? South Korea. I was selected as one of 100 high school students from across the United States to do a cultural exchange to South Korea funded by the Korea Foundation. We did a homestay, language and history crash courses, and a tour of the country. The most intense part was our visit to the Demilitarized Zone, where we spoke to a North Korean defector, went in the underground tunnels that connect the two countries, and went in the main building that lies half on North Korean soil and half on South Korean soil (thus making it so I can truthfully say I have stepped foot in North Korea).
My life since then has been within the United States. When it came time to look at colleges, the University of Arkansas was constantly in my top two. I loved the sense of community, the atmosphere, the proximity. I told my parents I was not going to school in Oklahoma, and I was not going back on that promise. I was graciously awarded the Alumni Association Board of Director’s scholarship, which allowed me to get involved on campus instead of having to worry about a job. This year, I am a student ambassador and I am a member of Roots and Shoots, which is a volunteer organization dedicated to helping animals and the environment. I have always had a dream of helping others, and in order to accomplish that, I knew I was going to need the right education. I am working towards a double major in international business and French with a minor in non-profit studies. With this, I hope to work with the Peace Corps and then possibly the United Nations. My internship with the Alumni Association and Mrs. January is a great opportunity to get my feet wet in Association work, which is yet another area I am looking into. I look forward to this upcoming year with the Alumni Association. GO HOGS!
