India Terrell Memorial Scholarship

In my childhood, I was unsure if I would possess India's qualities. My earliest memories are of hunger and loneliness as I was born to a Meth addict. Social Services removed me from my birth mother seven times before making the eighth final. I then lived in four different foster homes. Scarcity is something I know about and, unfortunately, it is not easily abandoned. When I say I am blessed, it is a truth that exudes from the depths of my soul. Stealing and hoarding, especially food, never left my thoughts. I look back now as a seventeen-year-old young woman at my little childhood self and know that no child should ever have to experience abandonment, hunger, neglect, or abuse. I had developed significant behavioral problems by the time I was adopted. I rebelled from these people in every way I could. Suddenly, my life was transformed into "family" reading hour, game time, showering with soap, homework, dinner at a table, brushing and flossing, RULES, and I had no say. Through the years and many, let's call them, "ups and downs", I absorbed. I was dragged along with "these people" to church, to pick up trash, donate at food banks, volunteer with ocean clean-up, rehabilitate trails, and plant trees. They worked every day, they told the truth, they cared for our planet and humanity, but would they stick around? You cannot force trust, as it needs to be earned and I do believe it was. I respected my adopted father's military career and once the opportunity to join the Navy Junior ROTC was presented to me at thirteen, I made my first truly positive and independent decision. ROTC instilled respect in me from a new and unique perspective. I delved into every venture, including Orienteering and the Academic Team as well as partaking in volunteering opportunities including outdoor clean-up, traffic and parking direction, food bank distribution, and summer camp kitchen service. This carried into my life so wholly that I volunteered with the Library, the Children's Theater, and Girls on the Run outside of school. The evolution of Areya became quite a thing. My anger and fear over yesterday were allowing for the opportunity of today and the dreams of tomorrow. I maintained above a 3.4 GPA while taking on the challenges of honors classes, foreign language, and advanced mathematics. I considered majoring in Social Work because of the influence of the many in my life, but my passion is in Science. How many times have I heard, "Who are those white people"? Those white people over there, the ones who never left? Those people are MY parents. I grew up in a multi-ethnic family and the key word is family. They had faith in me when I had none. My mother tells me I am charming! I find following in their footsteps a suitable path. My Mom was in Veterinary Dentistry and my Dad was a Naval Mechanical Engineer. My Mom says, "If I had it to do over again, I would become like Dr. G, Medical Examiner". We have watched every episode of Forensic Files together. Here I am, graduating high school, accepted to Fayetteville State University as a Forensic Science major, and most important of all, I am loved. I will devote my career to solving crime and bringing peace to surviving families. I am considering joining the Navy as an Officer once I obtain my degree. I will never forget my childhood. I will never forget the opportunities presented to me. I will never forget to pay it forward. So, when I say I am blessed...