Hi my name is Mara Stewart, I am a senior at Guilford College double majoring in health science and sociology/ anthropology. This past summer, I interned with Triad Health Project for my health science major. I was able to get hands on experience on how THP works from paperwork to learning more about HIV/AIDS and STDs. This experience helped me fall in love with the work THP does. I had just spent a fall semester of 2016 in South Africa and I got to learn about HIV/AIDS in a class I took but I did not have the hands on experience with working at a clinic. This made it more real, I was not just reading about it in a classroom, THP became my new classroom. During my time at THP, I realized that my college did not have free testing and I wanted to change that! During this past year, I am proud to say that, with the help of THP and the wellness center at Guilford College, we have done two testing events and gotten 96 people tested.

I recently got accepted into the Peace Corps as a Life Skills Educator with a focus in HIV/AIDS working with kids. I am excited to bring the skills I have learned from both the class I had in South Africa and THP to Botswana for the next 27 months. Without Triad Health Project, I do not think I would be as prepared as I am today!