When I read about who Kaila Davis was and how driven she was in both her academic and athletic careers, she reminded me so much of myself. Similar to the plans she had set for herself, for the past year, I had been debating whether to go Active Duty in the Marines or Army or do Army Reserve and pursue my dreams of becoming a professional athlete. It was only recently that I decided I should pursue my dreams and have Active Duty as a backup plan while I major in a field related to engineering, play track and field at a university, and do Reserves. I realize that majoring in the engineering field and playing sports in college is very demanding, so joining the Army Reserves is not something I wish to add at the moment. Instead, I want to give my all to getting educated in college and chase my track and field career as far as it will take me. To do this, though, I need to earn enough scholarship money that would help my parents pay for the costs of my twin sister and me both going to college. In many of the athletic and academic activities I take part in, I hold myself to a high standard, and I do not mind juggling classes and sports if it means that I become a better person. Having the grit to manage my time so that I excel in both aspects of my life is very important to me. During my junior year, I joined Running Start- a dual enrollment program for high schoolers to take college classes that earn credits for high school and college. Each term, I earned the Deans' Scholar Award, while I took both my volleyball and basketball team to districts as a varsity team captain, and I won the Girls 2A Discus State Champion title in May. This year, I earned the President's Scholar Award during my first term, and for my second term, I am currently taking Marine Biology, Business 101, and Math in Society to finish out the last of my required credits and prepare me for my future. In addition, I continue to lead and assist my teammates when my coaches need help. Being a part of a 2A school in a rural town with scarcely any girls willing to play, I find it important to encourage them and build their confidence. I do this because I love to bond with them; it sets an example for the younger girls and how they should treat their teammates when they become upperclassmen, and it assures that girls will feel comfortable joining in the future. I feel that it is important to take my ambitions to a higher level and inspire so many more people than the girls at my high school to step out of their comfort zone. I will especially inspire young women who are similar to Kaila and myself to strive for their goals, stay motivated and disciplined, and leave their mark.

Growing up in a Samoan household, sports is a big part of our entertainment. I played peewees basketball, and my love for the sport grew until the sixth grade. In middle school, my athletic confidence was at an all-time low due to harsh coaching. This lack of confidence followed me into high school through volleyball season, basketball season, and through my track and field season as well. My throwing coaches, however, believed in my abilities and assured me that a freshman making it to state was only the start of an incredible athletic career. Two years later, I became the 2A Discus State Champion with more confidence than ever and the best coaches I could ever ask for. My coach spent her off time watching videos of me throwing to pinpoint where I could improve; she focused more on quality throws than quantity, and she worked me more outside the ring than inside the ring. Outside of track practice, I spent even more time with my trainer and other coaches, who motivated me to continue playing basketball and lifting weights on top of taking college-level classes. Although my workload was heavy, the motivation of my coaches and the way they were able to make practices and training fun, I believe it was because of them that I became a state champion. Now, as a senior, reflecting on all the years I have dedicated to sports and the different coaching styles I have encountered, I appreciate my coaches more than they think. I especially appreciate the harsh coaches who shaped me because I have since become a stronger athlete mentally and physically. Through my experience with coaches, I want to continue to lead my peers as an upperclassman for one last year and be someone they can turn to for help and aid in their growth in and out of the court or ring. I also plan to make an impact and be an inspiring role model to the younger generations in the small town that I live in by showing them that they can do it, too. I know that every athlete's upbringing is different, so I wish to play even a small part in growing their confidence and allowing them to see the future that my coaches saw in me. I now have offers from multiple schools that want me to throw for their track and field team, and I hope I will leave an impact there as well. After throwing collegiately, I hope to even throw professionally and share my stories with young Polynesian athletes like myself, inspiring them to never give up.

My name is Adrianna Tupolo, and as a junior, I became the 2024 2A Discus State Champion. Every spring, I not only start my track and field career, but I also start training in club basketball, where I meet my trainer on the court and in the weight room. During my 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 track seasons, my week was full of track and basketball practices and training. During my 22-23 and 23-24 track and field seasons, after practices on Mondays and Wednesdays, I met with my trainer in the weight room, while on Tuesdays and Thursdays, we met on the basketball court. Then, on Saturday mornings, we met again on the court, and on Saturday nights, I dedicated time to playing volleyball with my family. In the process of my rigorous training schedule, I took college classes at Olympic College during my 23-24 season, kept good grades, and had a lot of fun. However, in my 22-23 season, after day 1 of my league meet, I went to basketball training and sprained my ankle. At this time in my life, I did not feel confident in myself or my basketball abilities, so when I sprained my ankle, I was overcome with sadness. The next morning would be day 2 of leagues, where I would have to perform in my two favorite events-- discus and javelin. On the bus ride to my league meet, with my crutches lying at my side, I could not stop thinking of what I was going to do. I felt like my hard work had gone down the drain, and everyone who expressed their excitement for my season would be disappointed. Then the bus stopped, and with every step I got closer to the ring, the more my tears started to run. Despite the challenge of having to throw with an injured ankle at such an important meet, I did what I needed and hopped into the ring to throw the discus. I ended up getting third place with a ticket to the district meet a few weeks later, where I would then get myself a spot to state and place 8th for 2A. Little did I know I would become a state champion a year later and overcome any doubt I used to have about myself and my athletic abilities. Now, as a senior reflecting on my sophomore and junior seasons, I am so grateful I was able to build confidence in myself and achieve such great things in both my academic and athletic careers. Since being given the title of State Champion, I have gotten offers from multiple schools to pursue my interests in track and field and construction. For my plans after high school, I plan to attend a university somewhere in Washington, where I can stay close to my supportive family. At this university, I want to continue my track and field career and major in the construction/architecture field so that I can gain the knowledge to build a home for my parents and future family.

Growing up, I loved learning about the history of ancient civilizations, which is what led me to want to become an archeologist. I remember my reason being, "Uncovering things that no one has seen in a million years is so cool! And I get to uncover some cool mystories-- awesome!" This reason took me far enough to take college-level classes as a junior in high school and pursue knowledge about my parents' home island of Samoa. I took geography, geological hazards, and archeology so I could get a better understanding of the earth, past events, and life as an archeologist. I even researched archeological finds in Samoa, the history of ancient Samoans, and how European contact changed the Samoan culture. To take it even further, my family and I visited both American Samoa and Samoa, where I learned a lot about my culture and got to see the adzes that were uncovered by archeologists in person as well as other historical artifacts and stories that were kept in the Museum of Samoa. Now, as a senior, my career path has taken a complete turn, and I am now taking college classes to prepare me for a job in construction. My interest in building things started to grow as a freshman when my parents bought a sawmill, cut down trees, and started to saw lumber to build a home. This newfound interest led me to get a job in landscaping and help my dad build onto our current house. Through this small journey, I learned how to demolish a house, rebuild a house, landscape the surroundings, and uncover a joy in construction. As I started to think about my life after high school more often, I was torn between choosing a job I had always wanted or choosing a job that would make more money and could even help my parents fulfill their dreams. In the end, I chose the latter because I found that I would benefit more in the construction field than in archeology. Although it was a tough decision to make, pursuing further education at a university is a challenge I am willing to face to help my parents and future family. Starting this new journey, my new reason is, "I need to focus more on building a new future than trying to dig up the past." This reason applies to more than just my career but my personal life as well. I want to step outside of my comfort zone, meet new people, be more confident in myself, and test my abilities as a student. This way, I can be a responsible leader in the construction industry and help those around me.

Being a Pacific Islander, attending college means that I have a better chance of making my parent's lives easier. I do everything for my parents, and I cannot imagine life any other way. Attending a college in Washington is an opportunity most Polynesians have not experienced. However, I am blessed to have parents who understand the importance of education. Constantly, I am reminded of my mother and father's struggles as young parents leaving Samoa to offer a better life for their kids. I am also reminded of every sacrifice they have made to provide for us and how they continue to keep the Lord in our lives. Because of this, I strive to do my best not only to keep them proud but also to represent my culture, our resilience, and our strong sense of family. One of the reasons why I believe I should receive the Faatuai and Fatilua Memorial Scholarship is because the last thing I wish to do is stress my parents out with how they are going to afford college for my twin and me. My twin and I are the youngest of the family; we help raise our nieces, clean the house, do our school work, as well as attend school sports and training. On top of this, I often help my parents with preparing everything to build their dream house. I spend most of my days worrying that my parents will need to pause their dreams of building a house so that I can follow my dream of becoming a professional athlete. As a result, my twin and I have been searching for scholarships that we qualify for, hoping to receive as much scholarship money as possible to prevent that from happening. The second reason why I believe I should receive this scholarship is because I have plans for my future. I am currently being recruited to play track and field, where I plan to major in construction management and possibly join the Army Reserves. Construction management is a major I hope to learn how I can continue to help my parents achieve their dream of building a house. I believe I can use my chance of going to college to learn a trait that will benefit not only my parents but also myself in the future. As for my plans with the Army Reserves, I am hoping to use the military benefits to pay for college. Although I am 17 with big dreams, it is evident that I often think of the future of my parents instead of myself. To me, I owe my mother and father everything that I have because I would not be here without them. They are the reason I have a past and the reason I get to plan a future, which is something I will never forget. Now, I can only say these things with so much passion because I also love my culture.