Pool Family LGBT+ Scholarship

My name is Sullivan Bono. I am a 23-year-old queer, disabled individual who is passionate about human rights advocacy work. I am in great need of help paying for college as I escaped an abusive family on my own and have great financial struggles as a result. I was shamed for not only my medical needs but for being my out and authentic self and expressing myself freely. I was told constantly that I was not acceptable. From 17-19, I made and executed a two-year escape plan. I would separate myself slowly and subtly, and take steps towards my complete independence. These steps included working jobs, sending emails tp and taking calls with any organizations that could help me in secret, filling out my FAFSA, and applying to and registering myself for college all on my own. Due to the violence and neglect I faced, I also had to function without aid or support for extended periods of time. I learned how to keep up with the necessities of living such as cooking meals, cleaning, doing laundry, accessing food banks, and emotionally regulating under the stress of these responsibilities while also dedicating myself to my studies. It took all of my willpower to survive and to believe that escape was a realistic option. I have now achieved this and so, so much more. As a result of my life situation, I have developed many skills, such as learning how to access and navigate community resources, state resources, and court systems, learning how to advocate for myself and others in a clear and assertive but still respectful manner, and how to handle adult responsibilities such as effective communication, organization, and time management. One great strength I have is that I am extremely dedicated and once I have a goal set, I am determined to meet it. I am skilled at critical thinking, and I have also developed quite a proficiency in research and communicating articulately. I have found great motivation to pursue social work and to be a human rights advocate. I would love to be known as an advocate for those in the LGBTQ+ and disabled community (often these spheres have great overlap) as those are the populations who often do not come from the best family environments. I feel the skills I know that the skills I have gained prove that there is nothing better I am suited for. My goal is to let those who have an abusive and/or supportive family situation know that getting out is an option. Building a life that affirms yourself, where thriving, and healing, and having a spiritual/found family that takes you in, tells you "you are worth it", and supports you in every way you ever dreamed of, is POSSIBLE. Self-affirmation and communal love are the central joys of being a part of the LGBTQ+ community. I want to spread knowledge about disabilities and help rectify the pervasive misinformation that contributes to public stigma about disabled people. I want to make a change that fosters an accepting environment for all. I want to teach people how to accommodate for themselves and to be able to make their lives easier and more enjoyable. I want people to be able to access the treatment they need without having to deal with years-long waitlists and distorted systems. I want nothing more than my struggles to have meaning, and my education (as well as my 4.0 GPA) to hold merit. Even if I can’t change the world, I deeply desire to help others and contribute to positive change in any way I can.

I spent the majority of my life posing as a heterosexual, cisgender woman out of fear. When I could no longer take the pain of living a life that did not fit me, I came out as a transgender man in the summer of 2016. I had made a life for myself in small town Pennsylvania, which promptly fell apart once I revealed my authentic self. I experienced transphobia in the workplace, in my friendships, and the 12 step fellowship that helped me get sober in 2011. I ultimately moved back home to Philadelphia after only a few months of living as male and on hormone replacement therapy. When I arrived home, I was embraced by an LGBTQ community that I didn't know existed and that I had never allowed myself to be immersed in. I continued to stay sober, and put my life back together again. I got into therapy where I set goals and reached them. I experienced my first ever Pride parade, and was able to undergo top surgery. Going back to school was the next goal on my list. I enrolled in the Community College of Philadelphia in the fall of 2021, and have been able to maintain a 4.0 GPA. My journey back to higher education has been a long one and not without obstacles and I still experience transphobia at times, but here I am. Had it not been for a queer community who believed in me and stepped up to love and support me, I might not have made it. Because of this, I feel compelled to give back to my community in any way that I can. As a future registered nurse, I'll have the opportunity to raise awareness of LGBTQ issues, dismantle stigma, and provide compassionate, trauma-informed care to a vulnerable community that lifted me up when I needed help. I am most interested in working with communities who are frequently underserved and overlooked in the healthcare system. These individuals consequently do not get the quality of care that they deserve. I look forward to working with LGBTQ at risk youth and emerging adults, those who struggle with mental health issues, people who are or have been incarcerated, low-income and underinsured individuals, and individuals experiencing homelessness. The LGBTQ community gave me the courage to be myself. I currently work in a hospital in the Philadelphia area where I am very open about my identity as a transgender man. I am the first transgender person that most of my coworkers have ever met. I believe that my experience as a member of the LGBTQ community gives me a unique perspective and makes me an asset to the healthcare profession. I am immensely proud of how far I have come in life, and I believe that I already bring a lot to the table. However, with higher education, I could contribute even more. There are simply not enough transgender healthcare providers, and the ones who do exist are so few and far between that they are often overbooked and understaffed. We need more of us to be able to better meet the needs of our community, and I am hoping to be able to be part of that.

I am an 18-year-old high school senior also graduating with my Associate in Science degree at the same time as my high school diploma. At a young age, my parents instilled the value of hard work and perseverance in me, never knowing how important those two words would become to me as a middle schooler. I learned how fulfilling community service work can be at a very young age as well. My parents allowed me to start volunteering on my own when I was 13 years old. My very first activity was to volunteer weekends (8 hours per day) at our local animal sanctuary called Summerfield Zoo. I would spend Spring and Summer weekends there doing various duties throughout the zoo. From running the petting zoo to feeding the animals, cleaning stalls, to helping in the nursery, it was a wonderful way to give back to our local animal rescue. Although I have been doing a wide variety of community service and volunteer work for over 5 years, I feel that the biggest leadership role within my community is when I am volunteering with local children and teens who have been bullied. As a severe bullying survivor, I spent most of my middle school and high school years being bullied just because I have two moms. I was hit, had things thrown at me, thrown into lockers, tormented, and cyberbullied. I felt alone and no one at school would help me. There were many times that I felt like my only option would be to just not be on this earth any longer. I did finally turn to my parents for help, but I was lucky that they understood my situation. Many LGBTQ+ youth and teens do not have that kind of support system at home or anywhere else. I feel that I can connect with them and create a positive environment for them to feel safe. My goal is to create a nurturing environment where they trust me and we can find positive ways to help them regain their self-esteem and self-worth. Creating empowering activities that help them protect themselves when necessary and enable them to seek the help required to overcome the psychological damage caused to them by being bullied. I know that being bullied myself is exactly what made me decide to do two things. One, test in for my high school’s dual enrollment program so that I could escape the bullies that never stopped tormenting me in school. And two, made me want to go into the healthcare field. I want to be able to help others, possibly when there is nowhere else to turn. I have always had a love for science, and I think I can combine my two passions and have a fulfilling career. I know that my real-life experiences will allow me the strength and compassion needed to be successful in helping others. I am hoping to receive as many scholarships as possible to help me fulfill my dreams of finishing my Bachelor’s degree and applying to Medical School. That is my dream thanks to hard work and perseverance.