With the holidays coming up, it’s easy for people to get caught up in the gifts they want instead of focusing on the welfare of others.

Highland Senior Eliza Parkin had the opportunity to serve others, far from home, whom she had never met through the organization YMAD.

Youth Making A Difference is a Utah organization that gives high school students the opportunity to provide service to the children living in India.

After hearing former seniors come back and talk so highly about their experiences with YMAD, Parkin became very interested in the program–however getting accepted into the program is not the easiest thing to do.

The process starts by filling out an application, and the application determines whether someone is qualified to get a one-on-one interview with the leaders to decide who is accepted into the program. About 80 people apply every year for the November trip and only 50 are accepted. Once someone is accepted, everything begins right away.

Throughout the ten months leading up to the two-week trip, the YMAD group has one to two meetings along with group activities every month. Within these months are a select few mandatory meetings, and if they are missed the participant will not be able to travel to India with the team. Their meetings and activities teach them and prepare them for the lessons they will teach the children in India.

Once they arrived in India, Parkin was quickly shocked by the living conditions and the amount of poverty she saw.

“It instantly makes you appreciate every single thing you have so much more,” Parkin said. “All the little things we take for granted.”

Even considering their extreme, dire conditions, every person Parkin met was full of joy and appreciation for what very little they had.

“They choose to be so happy,” Parkin said. “They always were smiling despite their difficult situation where they really didn’t have anything.”

Their days there were full of teaching in schools, playing with children, learning their Indian cultures, sharing their own cultures, and much more.

Not only do the members bond with the children they meet in India, they bond with everyone in their group. Parkin met and created long-lasting friendships with different teens from all over Salt Lake, people she would have never met otherwise.

The experience really helps the members recognize what they take for granted and how much they have to be thankful for. This life-changing experience was something Parkin will never forget and will always hold close to her heart.

“I recommend doing a service trip like YMAD to anyone who can, hands down,” Parkin said. “It was the most amazing experience of my life.”