For those who welcome a challenge, the world’s their oyster. Communication and Marketing major Marie-Helene Caron wanted to step beyond her comfort zone, so the French-speaking Quebec native hooked up with the National Student Exchange (NSE) and decided to come to Keene State College from the Université de Sherbrooke. Her primary goal was to improve her fluency in English, but she also wanted to expand her horizons and face challenges beyond the support of her family and friends, to improve herself personally and professionally.
That desire for a challenge got ratcheted up about a week before she was to head for Keene, when she was involved in an auto accident. Though she wasn’t hurt, the doctor who examined her found abnormal lymph nodes in her neck, which turned out to be thyroid cancer. “At this time, my life changed, …” she recalled.
Her treatments kept her from attending the fall 2010 semester here, but they didn’t dim her determination, and she made it to campus for the spring 2011 semester. Undaunted, she plunged right in to KSC life. She assisted in French classes four times a week, was a campus tour guide, took Zumba and kickboxing classes, took her friends skiing on weekends and gave them lessons, was active in the International Friends Club (and many other student activities), and took 16 credits and earned a 4.0 (which included a public-speaking class, though English is her second language). She also won Honorable Mention in the NSE’s Bette Worley Student Achievement Awards for the 2010–2011 exchange year.
“I come across many students who are motivated or talented or adventurous or have overcome great obstacles,” noted Steve Spiegel, associate director of KSC’s Global Education Office. “Seldom do students have all these qualities. Marie-Helene Caron would fit all these attributes and then much more.”
“It was awesome, even if I was not at the top of my shape,” Marie-Helene said. “I made a lot of friends there and I am still keeping in touch with them. My favorite quote is, ‘Make the most of every moment because life might surprise you at any time.'”