I'm Sam Poisson and I'm just a fourteen year old kid in a small town by Boston, MA. I was in public school until halfway through fourth grade and was homeschooled until the end of seventh grade. I graduated from a public middle school as of June 21, 2018. 

I will be going to a vocational high school in September of 2018 to study culinary arts as well as my other four choices being horticulture, allied health, cosmetology, and graphic communications. I have a GPA of 3.6 with most of my grades being A's and I plan on keeping them the same when I enter high school.


I've been playing piano for a little over five years now, and I play tennis, baseball, and badminton. I was in the drama club at my school during the production of our Three Musketeers play, I got the role of Monsieur Treville. I have three cats that I love more than anything, a dachshund, two budgies, a duck, and four chickens.

I am doing everything in my power to be able to earn enough money so I can use the AFS program in 2020. Learning languages can be difficult for most people, but for me, learning Japanese felt so natural. 

At first, I spent a couple hours learning and thought nothing of it, thinking that I would only be able to use this knowledge of the language in the small town I called my home. I could carry a basic conversation, but I didn't know for sure because no one in my town could speak Japanese. :''0

After a short while, I started discovering exchange programs for kids just like me: The ones who are determined to change their entire learning experience. I ultimately made it my lifelong goal to study abroad, and I was going to do anything to reach my goal.

At first I thought it was impossible for me, a small child from an even smaller town, to spend a year on the other side of the world. But, of course, I asked my mother while hanging onto the miniscule amount of hope I had.

Brandishing a goofy grin, I held my computer up to my mother and meekly asked, 
"Eyyy, Ma... Can I, uh, go to Japan?" 
What came as a complete shock was when my mother responded, 
"Yea, sure. You just have to pay for it." 

Huh.

I find living with host families to be the most interesting part about going abroad as you get to view life in an entirely different perspective with such kindhearted and welcoming people by your side. I'm hoping that when I come back from my year-long exchange to Japan, I can bring back memories and photos I can look back on, along with stories to tell everyone back home.

I would like to drastically improve my language skills, and I'll do my best to reach the point where I can firmly say I speak it fluently. I would also like to inform family and friends on what the culture is like and tell them about everything I did and learned on my trip to Japan.

This all sounds fantastic, but for a fourteen year old to earn roughly $16,000 in a little more than a year may sound a little less than comforting. I have a Summer job working for my father's house renovating company, and once Summer is over I'll be getting another part-time job. 

Even though every cent I make is going toward paying for the exchange program, It's still a huge stretch for a minor to make it to a $16K mark. I have a single working mother and it would be wrong of me to ask her for help, and although I'm trying to pay for the entirety of the cost, I don't think it can be done alone.

I joined the Sponsor an AFSer program, which is an online fundraising tool provided by AFS to allow potential sponsors to make easy, secure, and non tax-deductible contributions to my AFS program fee. Any amount would mean the world to me, and if you know anyone who may be interesting in helping, please forward or share this with them! 

I'll be uploading photos, videos, and updates whenever I can, so your donation will not only be making a small child's dream come true, but will also be rewarding you with an insider's perspective on what it's like to go abroad. Thank you so much, whether you're donating or just reading this, thank you!