Tucked into the corner of a hallway at Good Samaritan Hospital sits a small desk scattered with pens, highlighters and spreadsheets. Phone calls ring in by the minute, each one an important request from a patient. At the center of it all is senior Aryana Bharali, leading her crew of volunteers through each shift.

Aryana began volunteering at Good Samaritan in her frosh year, joining a team of high school students who completed tasks around the hospital, from bringing snacks to parents in the NICU to discharging patients.

“Discharging people is my favorite thing to do,” Aryana said. “I get to interact with the patients one-on-one when they’re having the most positive part of their experience. I communicate with them like a real person because I know how stressful it is in hospitals. I get to be a part of that and make their experience a little bit better.”

As she advanced in the program, Aryana stepped into a leadership role, mentoring new volunteers and helping them find their footing in the hospital. Though she now embraces the responsibility with confidence, she didn’t always feel ready.

“I used to believe that being younger meant I could never be the more experienced or knowledgeable person,” Aryana said. “To finally step into that role — it wasn’t something I thought I’d ever be able to achieve, but I have.”

Through her work as a hospital volunteer and mentor, Aryana learned to overcome her shyness and become more approachable. Her desire to support patients and their families pushed her past the self-doubt that once held her back.

“When I first started volunteering, it was really nerve-wracking for me, but the more I did it, I started realizing there’s nothing to be afraid of because I knew that I had the knowledge that they wanted from me,” Aryana said. “The more I did it, the less fear I had in going up to people because there’s really nothing that can go wrong. It’s ok if I don’t know something. All of my shyness and social anxiety go away when I know that someone needs help. Whatever it takes, I will help them if I can.”

Math teacher Caren Furtado advised Aryana since her frosh year and has seen this transformation firsthand.

“What she’s really found is an inner strength where she can decide what she wants to do and go after it,” Furtado said. “She’ll be so secure in that decision, which is very different from her frosh and sophomore year self. In junior year, she started that transition, and I think it’s only been upwards since.”

Outside the hospital, Aryana also volunteers with children on the autism spectrum. Through her organization, she’s paired with a buddy and works to build a relationship that grows stronger with each session. In the process, she not only encourages her buddy to step out of their comfort zone but also does the same.

“I make sure that they feel validated,” Aryana said. “If they are feeling stressed by some situation, I’ll tell them it’s ok to feel stressed, and I’ll do whatever I can to help them. I focus on the prospect of knowing that I can make them a more successful person in the future because I know how much potential they have. The fact that I can play some role in the person they become in the future, that is what keeps me going.”

Close friend and fellow senior Norah Mehanna met Aryana in sophomore year and saw her begin to open up through shared classes and time spent together.

“She started off being really shy and not really talking to people,” Norah said. “She’s definitely grown to be more confident in herself. Now, I sit next to her in APES, so I see her personality in class and I see her speak up more. I’m excited for her next year, I think she’ll have a lot of fun and she’ll grow more.”

Looking back on her growth, Aryana sees each experience as a step toward becoming the person she wants to be. She hopes to continue building a life driven by service, compassion and clarity.

“I feel like I’m more complete as a person after doing this,” Aryana said. “I feel like I haven’t achieved my full capability or potential yet, but all of these little things I do are working towards becoming the person I want to be, a more mature person, someone who has direction. I feel like all this aligned all of my goals together because I think about all the things I want to do and it’s kind of a lot, but these things honestly helped me find my goals, because I’ve discovered what I love through all of them.”