By REBECCA WALSH education reporter
When refugee Samson Belachew heard that a complete stranger wanted to shout him a trip home to Ethiopia, he wondered if he had misunderstood.
"Some things you can't really believe. I just asked, 'So I'm going back, right?' "
The 18-year-old arrived in New Zealand last year speaking little English but with a strong determination to succeed.
Already he is well on his way.
A student at Onehunga High School, he won the Endeavour Cup - awarded to students who overcome hardship - and a host of certificates at this year's prizegiving.
His achievements so impressed a businessman and former student in the audience that he offered to pay Samson's return airfare home.
Samson says it is the best Christmas present he could have received. It would have been years before he could have afforded to travel back to see his mother and grandmother in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa.
"It was great. I was really surprised. I really miss my country, my friends and my family. I didn't realise how much I miss them. Now I just can't sleep."
Samson and two of his sisters arrived in February last year, fleeing unrest in Ethiopia. Nine of his family live here, but he has not seen his mother for seven years.
"When I arrived here I really wanted to study ... You have all the resources here, lots of books. I thought, I'm going to study hard and get good grades."
Samson said the first three months were hard. Not only did he not speak English, he had never touched a computer before.
But with the help of a home tutor from the Centre for Refugee Education, supportive teachers and plenty of hard work, he will return for the seventh form and hopes to go on to university.
Onehunga High School seventh-form dean Iva Ropati described Samson's achievements as "quite a feat."
"When he first came to the school, all he could say was the word, 'Yep.'
"He has gone from a person who had no English whatsoever to one who is now averaging 75 per cent in his exams."
For Samson, school in Ethiopia was vastly different.
"Back home in class there are 75 students, so the teacher does not have the chance to get to know you.
"Here they know my name. It's great. It's really nice. I really do appreciate that."
He hopes to be in Ethiopia before the Ethiopian Christmas on January 7, which is also his birthday.
Samson is one of 300 refugee students in Auckland who have entered New Zealand under the quota refugee scheme.
Angela Yatri, refugee education liaison officer for the Centre for Refugee Education, described him as a role model and inspiration for his community.
Great Hearts: Free trip home crowns year of heroic effort
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