When it comes to choosing a professional career, some high school graduates are unsure of how they want to spend the next 40-plus years. However, this isn’t the case for Omar Syed, who will be attending The Ohio State University in the fall to major in Arabic and pre-med.
As a part of the 2019 graduating class of Pickerington High School North, Syed has been recognized with the Decem Decori. This distinction is given to 10 students at each Pickerington High School who have the highest grade-point average.
Born in Ohio, Syed has lived in Pickerington his whole life, away from his family’s origins in Pakistan. Although foreign to him, Syed continues to carry a torch for his family’s heritage and wants to become bilingual in Arabic.
Thanks to his upbringing, cultural background and supportive community, Syed is determined to make a difference in the world.
“I hope I can learn to bridge a lot of gaps in the future. I want to make the world a more tolerant and peaceful place,” says Syed.
Syed has been involved with the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community and has been inspired by the international aid agency, Humanity First. Humanity First is an international charity which provides disaster relief and assistance to those in need, regardless of race, religion or politics.
The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community is established in more than 200 countries and is a fast-growing international revival movement within Islamic communities.
“Our mission is to spread the true and peaceful message of Islam,” says Syed. “The community is dedicated to service and basically acts as a beacon of light. It’s dedicated to spreading that peaceful message not just through words, but also through actions.”
“It is a center where I can still be connected to everything on campus as well as surrounded by family.” - Omar Syed
During his time at OSU, Syed hopes to volunteer at the Nasir Hospital in Guatemala, a facility that was recently inaugurated by Humanity First, and is in need of manpower.
“I want to brush up on my Spanish and do some work there,” he says. “The Nasir Hospital means service and it’s dedicated to helping people.”
Combining his two passions, faith and service, Syed wants to become a doctor and serve in a developing country.
“I think that service to humanity is why I want to be a doctor,” says Syed. “I want to be a source of comfort for others.”
He attributes much of his passion and aspirations to his parents and the Pickerington community.
“It helps that I was brought up in an area where my parents emphasized the importance of being kind to others,” he says. “They conveyed this through their own actions and morals; reflecting that in our daily life.”
Syed hopes that by using his talents to become a doctor, he will help make the world a better place.
“People like me, we are all the same, we all feel the same, our hearts beat all the same,” he says.
Syed’s background has given him an interesting perspective on the world. He has had exposure to the Arabic language already and has learned some of the alphabet. He also has a tight-knit family and community. These are some of the reasons Syed chose OSU.
“I’ve always been told that OSU is a very good school,” he says. “It is a center where I can still be connected to everything on campus as well as surrounded by family.”
Syed emphasizes the importance of spreading tolerance and peace through the words of his mentor, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, the founder of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community.
As Ahmad says, “The principle to which we adhere to is that we have kindness at heart for the whole of mankind.” – Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad
Marissa Smithinsky is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.