Vote NOW for your choice of this year’s Volunteer of the Year!
Volunteer of the Year 2024
Nominees Deutschschweiz
Elisabeth Messerli
Dear Afsers
What a pleasure and what an honour to be nominated as Volunteer of the Year 2025!
I started volunteering for AFS about twenty years ago. When one of our sons went to Russia for a year, we were a host family for Namtaan from Thailand. It was an inspiring experience that motivated us to host children again and again. For many years, I have been accompanying host families as a Family Contact Person (FCP) during the exchange year, coordinating assignments and advising my new colleagues on any problems that arise. I am part of the Chair Team of the Zurich Chapter and, in addition to the great cooperation, I appreciate the exchange of experiences between older and very young AFSers.
Christiane Schmidt
Dear AFSers
I have been a volunteer with the AFS airport team for around 12 years. This is because it is important to me to make intercultural exchange possible for everyone who wants it. I’ve recently experienced what this means for myself. I was travelling in Wales on a AFS scholarship until the end of March. As soon as I landed, the differences were striking. “Healthy” snacks from the kiosk consisted of a varied assortment of “Gummibärli”, crisps and colourful drinks. “A colourful culinary rainbow is healthy” or so they say. And if the colourful confusion does cause stomach problems or further discomfort, the appropriate remedies are easily available to put everything back in order. This would be rather unimaginable in Switzerland.
On the bus to Cardiff, we are kindly asked to fasten our seatbelts. Nobody does it except… Of course there are similarities. They are just as important
Being able to accept, recognise and learn from differences enriches our everyday lives. That’s why, after many years, I always look forward to a new assignment with AFS.
Nominees Romandie
Jennifer Petree
Hi, I’m Jennifer Petree.
I first joined AFS as a US exchange student to Argentina in 1987, an experience that was life changing. Butunfortunately, I didn’t stay involved with AFS after I returned home to California, nor after I moved to Lausanne 20 years ago – that was until the spring of 2023, when I saw an ad for a selection interview volunteer position and immediately felt motivated to re-engage.
I have since been an active member of the selection interview team for the Swiss romandie – a role I love because it puts me in contact with all kinds of curious and adventurous teens from my region. During our interviews together, I get to know each of them and hear about their dreams to go abroad. It’s a great chance to tell them more about what makes AFS special and how an exchange year can positively affect their lives and expand their world views.
Being a volunteer for AFS has also been a pathway for my own personal development. I have had the chance to play new roles, develop new skills and belong to a global community of like–minded people. In addition to my work as a selection interviewer, I recently became a certified PEAK facilitator for AFS’s unique Intercultural Competence curriculum. I hope to help AFS Switzerland become a leading organization in this domain nationwide.
It’s easy to feel that as individuals, we are powerless to change much. But being a volunteer with AFS has given me a sense of agency – a feeling that I have the power to help create positive, transformational experiences for a new generation of young people who might go on to become the kind of ambassadors for peace that our world needs.
In these difficult times, that are also hyper competitive and overly performance driven, it’s also empowering to be part of a human-centered organization that trusts in the talents of volunteers, and gives us a real voice in how things are done. I look forward to being part of AFS Switzerland in the months and years to come, collaborating with new teams, playing new roles and helping the organization continue to carry out it’s beautiful and important mission.
Maria Paz Reyes Hardy
Hello I’m Maria Paz
Being part of AFS has been a deeply transformative and fulfilling journey for me. My connection with this intercultural movement began during 2007/08 when I embarked on an exchange program to Lipari, Italy. This experience not only broadened my worldview but also instilled in me a profound appreciation for cultural diversity and the power of human connections.
Since then, I have remained involved in AFS, contributing as a volunteer in local committees—first in Chile (Santiago and Antofagasta) and now in Switzerland (Geneva). Over the years, I have taken on various roles, including home interviewer, participant contact person, camp counselor, airport team member, and selection interview coordinator. Each role has allowed me to engage with people from different backgrounds, support students and families in their intercultural journeys, and promote the values of global citizenship.
What drives my ongoing commitment to AFS is my firm belief in its mission—to foster understanding, empathy, and mutual respect across cultures. I have witnessed firsthand how intercultural exchanges transform individuals, challenge perspectives, and build bridges between communities. Being part of this movement gives me a sense of purpose and responsibility in helping create a more inclusive and interconnected world. I am incredibly grateful for everything AFS has given me, and I am committed to continuing this journey, sharing the spirit of intercultural exchange, and inspiring others to embrace the richness of diversity.