The Lois Johnson Kemble Memorial Scholarship

For as long as I can remember, art has always been a form of expression for me. My earliest memories as a child often involved drawing with broken crayons and poorly sharpened pencils on receipt papers that I found while rummaging through my mother’s purse. Though my family struggled to afford proper art supplies, I made do with what I could find around my cluttered childhood home. As I grew older, and still to this day, art became more of a therapy, rather than a pastime. Growing up, my home life was nothing short of broken. Between juggling 4 kids, an abusive spouse, and a lot of baggage, my mother has tried her best with the cards she has been dealt. I happen to be the youngest of my siblings, with two lovely older sisters and an overprotective brother. As a young child, my sisters tried their best to shield me from the harsh reality that was domestic violence. Despite this, I can still hear the memories of muffled yelling through my sister’s cuffed hands, and the sound of broken glass and crying ringing throughout the thin walls of the house. I’m forever grateful for my siblings, who sheltered me from the chaos of my younger years. At the age of 13, my parents finally decided to split, and a boulder was lifted off of my shoulders. I wasn’t blessed with the easiest upbringing, but I believe that it’s made me who I am today In my single-parent, lower-income home, the thought of college was always more of a dream, rather than a future. My mother and I spoke about how we would pay the bills that were due, not about careers that require a college degree. Despite this, I have worked extremely hard to maintain a good academic reputation in my best attempt to earn scholarships and attend college. Besides for my oldest sister, none of my siblings have graduated high school, so I have had very little guidance on my journey, but this obstacle only makes me more driven to accomplish my goal of graduating college. Meanwhile at home, I was dealing with my own personal struggles. My desire to prove myself as a good student tied to the need for me to control something in my chaotic home life caused me to develop an eating disorder. School became nearly impossible, as the energy it took to accomplish the smallest tasks was often too much for my malnourished body to handle. My body was shrinking and my mind was struggling, but thankfully neither one was willing to give up. My junior year, the hopeful but sick and screaming person inside of me grabbed my attention, and I began to realize the damage I had done to my body. With this newfound self-realization, I made the tough call to recover on my own. My recovery has given me a voice, and more importantly, a passion to help others. My plan is to be the first person in my family to graduate college by attending UNL and obtaining a degree in education. After college, I’d love to become an art teacher so that I can use my life experience and knowledge to teach others the impact that art can have on one’s life. As a senior in high school, I am already challenging myself by taking college classes for dual credit. With this scholarship, I would not only be able to pay for a fraction of my tuition, but I would also be aided in my overall dream of attending college. Thank you for considering me for this amazing opportunity.