Christina Morales Wood, an AFS-USA host parent and volunteer, recently shared some exciting news with us – one of her former exchange students, Labiba from Bangladesh, was recently named as 2nd runner-up for Miss World Bangladesh! This blog article includes testimonials from both Christina and Labiba about the impact exchange has had on their lives since, and the excitement of celebrating this accomplishment.
Christina:
When I learned that Labiba was a finalist for Miss World Bangladesh, I was incredibly proud.
Labiba joined our family during one of the most uncertain moments in recent history. As a YES Program student, she came to live with us after her original host family could no longer host as the COVID-19 pandemic began. We expected her stay to be brief, until she could return to Bangladesh, but international travel shut down and she remained with us through June 2020.
It wasn’t the exchange experience anyone had imagined. Overnight, Labiba found herself living with a new family while the world grappled with a pandemic and international travel ground to a halt. She navigated that uncertainty with remarkable resilience.
Having hosted many exchange students over the years and being one of my local team’s support coordinators, I know that exchange doesn’t just build understanding during the best of times, it often fosters the strongest connections through the most difficult times. I’m grateful that our family could provide a safe place for Labiba during such an unprecedented period.
Seeing her now represent Bangladesh as a Miss World Bangladesh finalist is such a joy. We are proud of all she has accomplished and wish her every success in this exciting next chapter.
Labiba:
Looking back, my exchange year was one of the moments that truly changed the direction of my life. Leaving Bangladesh as a teenager was exciting but also intimidating. My host family in Portland, Oregon welcomed me with so much love and kindness that they quickly became my second family, and to this day, we still keep in touch.
They taught me that home isn’t always a place — it can be the people who believe in you. As a cultural ambassador for Bangladesh, I discovered that while our languages and traditions may differ, compassion, curiosity, and kindness are universal. That experience gave me the confidence to dream bigger, serve others more intentionally, and embrace every opportunity with an open heart.
Today, I’m an architecture student, a volunteer, and recently had the honor of becoming the 2nd Runner-Up at Miss World Bangladesh 2026, where I advocated for women’s digital empowerment through my project, SheEmpower Digital. I believe student exchange is one of the most powerful ways to build a more understanding world, because it reminds us that when we open our hearts to different cultures, we often discover more about ourselves.
AFS experiences can lead host families and exchange students down many unexpected paths – start writing your own hosting story today!