Noah Lee of Wayland and Daanish Qureshi of Weston have grown up in in families where service is a default setting. They were recognized with the March 2019 Rising Youth Leadership Award (RYLA), presented by the Rotary Club of Weston and Wayland. Joseph DeVito, CEO of The Village Bank, and Michael Wyner, Editor of the Weston and Wayland Town Criers, joined in applauding and challenging Lee and Qureshi. DeVito urged them to “cherish your communities and keep service high in your minds. Share your talents, passion and commitment as you have and our communities will continue to improve.” Wyner, a journalist, asked questions challenging the young men to continue to think about putting service above self and seeing what opportunities present themselves as a result.
“For the last eight years, Noah Lee and his family have been the founders and organizers of The Full House Charity Program,” wrote Annie Gordon, COO of Family Aid Boston. “Since 2011, this program has provided customized holiday gifts to homeless children in the New England area. Three years ago, the Lee family contacted FamilyAid Boston to see if they could provide assistance to our homeless families, especially the children during the holidays. We were fortunate to be the recipient of this call as the program, thanks especially to Noah, has been a highlights of our holiday season for both the staff and parents and children we work with for the past three years.”
Gordon continued, saying “Behind the scenes, Noah works tirelessly for dozens of hours preparing packages for our program's children. I know that he loves preparing the sporting equipment and young boys and girls packages. During the event, he is full of energy and joy that is evident to all the staff and families. I want to share a special moment that occurred this year with Noah. Not only did he come and deliver all of the presents, but after the ceremony, he could have packed up and just left. Instead, he spent over a half an hour just throwing a football around with a young boy. To some, this action may have been just a nice gesture, but to this young boy, `it meant the world to have this high school boy, who starts on his school's Varsity basketball and tennis team, spend that much time with him. It was a moment of selflessness that that will be remembered by that young boy.” Noah said that “Some kids have told me or my family that this is the best day of their lives”. Noah adds that “moments like those are why I love working with the Full house Charity program. As much as these kids enjoy their gifts, I enjoy the smiles and happy feeling in the room even more.”
Daanish Qureshi was nominated by numerous people spread across the globe. Marla Schay, Director of Guidance at Weston High School, wrote “Not only is Daanish active in the school community, he has traveled with his family to support Syrian refugees in camps and works during the summers on Nantucket with a nature museum. He has a broad worldview that supports others and the environment.”
Eileen Debenham, Weston PTO STEM Council Chair, echoed Schay saying, “Daanish on his own, volunteered to be a high school mentor for the Weston Middle School Robotics Club. He spent countless hours in the summer preparing and researching this year's FIRST LEGO League Challenge. Every Thursday since the club started meeting in the fall, Daanish has attended club sessions coaching middle school students on designing, building, and programming their robots. He is careful to teach and inspire rather than do the work for students. He has also provided much needed guidance for parent coaches that are new to FIRST.
Michael Wolfe, a community member and friend, summarized Qureshi’s broad contributions to our communities in his nomination, noting “He is in his 4th year of volunteering at the IMSO food shelter in Boston and his 4th year as Lead Mentor for his school Robotics Team. Through video-calling, he teaches Robotics to youths in Kenya, Africa, and traveled there in February 2019. He has traveled to refugee camps in Jordan twice with Helping Hand for Relief & Development and United Muslim Relief. He’s been a Junior Facilitator for STOP (Students Together Opposing Prejudices) for three years and has volunteered for the Maria Mitchell Center in marine biology and natural sciences in Nantucket for five years. Daanish is also a Board Member of his ICB Wayland Youth Group, which organizes religious and secular activities for 40 Youth Group members, aged 12 to 17.”
In each type of service, Qureshi has the same perspective: “I love using the knowledge and experience I have gained through my trials and errors to help others who are learning or going through a similar situation that I have. For example, through years of doing the FIRST LEGO League robotics challenge, I have learned how to be successful and have a good time. Therefore, I can pass down these experiences to younger students who can take them and make a better product than they could have before.”
Both Lee and Qureshi were also recognized with citations from the Massachusetts House of Representatives. The Rotary Rising Youth Leadership Award (RYLA) recognizes sophomores from Weston and Wayland for community service and leadership that demonstrates the students’ appreciation of the Rotary ideal of “service above self.”
The Rotary Rising Youth Leadership Award (RYLA) program identifies high potential, community-oriented students with leadership potential. They are also encouraged to apply to represent Wayland and Weston at the 2019 Rotary Youth Leadership Academy, a 2.5-day leadership conference at Fitchburg State University June 28-30. In years past, approximately 200 students along with 200 volunteers take part in this weekend conference.
The Weston Wayland Rotary Club (WWRC) has a numerous events in April and may which are open to anyone as a volunteer or attendee. If you would like to learn more about the Weston Wayland Rotary Club (WWRC), get involved, or join the club for any upcoming event or weekly club gathering please check out the club website www.westonwaylandrotary.com.
