John Stevens

Hello! My name is John Stevens, I go by Jack though. I have had many amazing experiences in the past fours years that have brought me to where I currently stand in this lifelong adventure. Over the three years it took me to graduate high school, I lived in four different states and went to four different schools. Living from the suburbs of Detroit, to the outer towns of Indianapolis, to the depths of the Ozark Mountains, and finally just outside New York City in the Long Island Sound town Greenwich, Connecticut, I have grown to know many different cultures, meet the most interesting of people and experience things so vividly I will never forget them for the rest of my life. After graduating at 17 years old in Connecticut, I moved back to Michigan where I worked for the summer and fall while preparing for a six month mission trip set to begin January 2015. My interest in missions trips began with a 10 day trip to Haiti I took in the summer of 2013 and expanded with a week long trip to Jamaica in the winter of 2014. So as I prepared to embark on this 6 month adventure to experience new things and help people primarily in Perth, Australia but expanding to southeast Asian countries nearby I was anxious with anticipation. Unfortunately though, despite all my effort, my donors efforts, and help from every resource available, my trip plans fell to the floor just weeks before my scheduled departure because of issues with my visa. Upon this huge disappointment, I walked into University of Michigan- Dearborn's admissions office three days into the winter semester, was accepted on the spot and began classes the following week. My first semester was very successful and I'm glad I got my feet wet, put myself a semester ahead of what was supposed to be my graduating class, and didn't spend another 4 months working instead of studying. When rugby practices began in March I was incredibly excited to begin my second season of a sport I was introduced to on the east coast and absolutely fell in love with. I am spending this current summer working from my mother's home in Birmingham, Michigan where I live with her and my younger brother. The biggest project ahead of me is to get on the rugby team at U of M Ann Arbor for the fall so I can commute from Ann Arbor to Dearborn for classes, continue playing the sport I love, and get used to the culture in order fot my future transfer from U of M- Dearborn to Ann Arbor to be an easy transition.