Rediscovering Her Roots, Serving Others

Raised in Nepal along with her siblings, Sherpa lived for two years in a hostel in the capital city of Kathmandu to receive better schooling. Her mother and grandmother continued to live in the mountain village of Sanogumela, where Sherpa later attended school. At age 9, about to enter second grade, she and her family immigrated to the U.S., where her father had settled before the rest of the family arrived. At first, Sherpa found it difficult to adjust and wasn’t comfortable in the classroom. Once Sherpa entered high school, however, she broke out of her shell—“my time to shine”—and this was followed by her acceptance at UB. Following her brother, Sherpa was the second person in her family to attend college, graduating from UB this past spring with a bachelor of arts in legal studies and psychology.

“For me, what drives me is my story, my journey,” Sherpa says. “My parents brought me to the U.S. for opportunities—for a better life and education. I can now use my resources and connections to help others.”

During winter break of her senior year, Sherpa, accompanied by fellow UB graduate and Nepal native Hemanta Adhikari, returned to Sanogumela and her former school there. As part of an experiential program they called “Scholars of Tomorrow,” the two women fundraised online to collect winter jackets, shoes and school supplies. After arriving at Lukla Airport, they walked four hours in wintry weather to deliver these materials to Shree Janasewa Basic Secondary School. Sherpa and Adhikari taught younger students about nutrition and organic food systems; they also conducted team-building and critical thinking activities for older students. “We not only wanted to provide supplies so that students didn’t have to worry,” Sherpa says. “We also wished to learn from and interact with them. I really wanted to take things I had learned from my own classroom experience and bring them to Nepal to share with others. I was blessed with so many opportunities as an undergrad at UB.”

She adds: “This trip gave me the opportunity to serve and give back to the very community that I was born and raised in and where I first learned to read. It was emotional for me—connecting with my roots after 13 years or so. But it was also very rewarding,” she says.

At first undecided about a major, Sherpa found her academic purpose when she participated as a sophomore in the annual Global Innovation Challenge sponsored by UB’s Community of Excellence for Global Health Equity. She and her team developed United Youth, a mentoring program that pairs newly arrived refugee high school students with former refugees. (Sherpa and her family were asylum-seekers from Nepal, not refugees.)

As a junior, she traveled to Odisha, India, to help analyze health and sanitation problems as part of Amrita University’s Live-in-Labs program. Most recently, Sherpa and fellow alumna Danielle Nerber, BA ’18, took part in a reusable sanitary pad project offered by UB’s Experiential Learning Network. This initiative provided sanitary products to women and girls in Tanzania, focusing on innovative solutions and encouraging local women to sew reusable pads, which can be sold to generate revenue.

Now an established world traveler and intrepid philanthropist, Sherpa anticipates a promising future. She has joined AmeriCorps VISTA and beginning this fall will work in the City of Buffalo’s law department as part of Project M.O.V.E., a municipal program that stands for “Mobilizing Opportunities for Volunteer Experiences.”

“This community gave me a lot of opportunities,” Sherpa says. “Now that I’ve graduated, I feel like it’s time for me to give back.” She is now enrolled in a human rights practice certificate program with the University of Arizona. Eventually, she plans to earn a master’s degree in international relations or human rights.

But Sherpa has not forgotten Nepal—or her heritage. She hopes to one day return to her hometown and visit extended family who live there.

“It was heartwarming to see the reactions of some of the community members whom I vividly remember—the same school principal and families who were proud of my accomplishments—because I am a product of that community. My roots are there.”