The first few minutes were quiet. As people found their seats, I wondered if anyone would be willing to share what it was like growing up in rural Maine. We had invited students and community members to discuss the challenges our towns face, but conversations like these require trust. I smiled as each person walked through the door, hoping a simple welcome would make speaking easier. Then one person shared a story. Another nodded in agreement. Before long, the room filled with conversation instead of silence. As a Rural Youth Organizer for Aroostook County in Maine with JustME for JustUS Rural, I facilitated civic dialogue initiatives that brought together rural youth and community members to discuss the challenges facing rural Maine. Watching strangers leave with new connections, I realized that some of the most meaningful service isn't solving someone's problem. Sometimes it's creating a place where people feel heard, respected, and connected. That lesson stayed with me when I became Lieutenant Governor of my Key Club division. I learned that leadership through service isn't about doing the most work yourself. It's about helping other people discover that they can make a difference too. At my high school, I organized more than fifteen community service projects, including a food drive that collected over 500 canned goods for a local homeless shelter, community cleanup walks that removed enough litter to fill five to ten large trash bags, helping clean up after community events, and card writing campaigns that delivered more than thirty handmade cards to residents of a local elder care home during Christmas, Valentine's Day, and Mother's Day. I also led our largest fundraiser, raising more than $1,500 to support future service projects and leadership opportunities. Beyond my own school, I mentored Key Clubs across northern Maine, encouraging student leaders and helping clubs strengthen their impact in their own communities. Service also taught me that compassion isn't limited to people. While volunteering at a wildlife sanctuary in Namibia, I helped care for injured and orphaned wildlife alongside volunteers from around the world. The animals didn't know where we came from. They simply depended on people willing to give their time and energy to protect them. It reminded me that leadership begins with recognizing a need, even when there is no expectation of recognition in return. That same desire to serve led me to an unpaid engineering internship, where I helped develop prosthetic hands for people with upper limb differences. The first time one of our designs wrapped its fingers around a full water bottle, everyone in the room celebrated. It looked like such a small movement, but we knew it represented something much bigger. Somewhere, someone would use that hand for everyday tasks many of us take for granted. In that moment, engineering became another way to serve others. Leadership through service creates a ripple effect. One volunteer can help one person, but a leader who inspires others to serve can strengthen an entire community. I've learned that leadership isn't about standing in front of a crowd. More often, it's about standing beside people until they realize they can make a difference too. As I study biomedical engineering, I hope my future is measured not only by the problems I solve, but also by the people I encourage to solve problems alongside me. Whether serving my community, caring for wildlife, or designing technology that restores independence, I want to keep creating opportunities for others to make a difference. Kindness grows when shared, and I hope to spend my life helping that ripple continue.

The first time our team’s 3D printed prosthetic hand wrapped around a plastic water bottle, everyone in the room held their breath. Then it lifted the bottle off the table. It was such a simple movement that most people would never notice. I could not stop thinking about it. Somewhere in the Dominican Republic, someone might use that same hand to button a shirt, hold a cup, or hug a family member. At that moment, engineering stopped feeling like equations and CAD models. It became deeply personal. I realized that something I helped build could give another person back a piece of their independence. My Christian faith has shaped the way I understand moments like that. I believe every person is created in God’s image and has immeasurable worth. Because of that, engineering is never just about solving technical problems. It is about serving people with compassion and using the gifts God has given me to improve someone else’s life. If you asked the people who know me best, they would probably tell you that my favorite thing is simply being with people. I love my family and friends, and I genuinely enjoy getting to know new people wherever I go. Every person has a story worth hearing, and every story reminds me why serving others matters. After that experience, I wanted every engineering project to solve a real problem for someone. At the Maine School of Science and Mathematics (MSSM), I looked for every chance to take ideas from class and turn them into something useful. On our CubeSat (small educational satellite) team, we spent months designing, testing, redesigning, and trying again until our satellite components earned first place in Maine’s CubeSat Design Competition. Later, at Maine’s Sustainable Energy Leaders of the Future Institute, my team developed sustainability solutions that received the Best Design Award. Those experiences taught me that the best ideas rarely work the first time, but they are worth pursuing because they can change someone’s life. That lesson became even more real during my engineering internship at the University of Southern Maine. While assembling and testing more than fifty prosthetic hands, I saw how a small design change could make everyday tasks easier for another person. Behind every design decision was someone waiting for the chance to be more independent. I realized that service does not always look dramatic. Sometimes it looks like patiently solving one problem after another until you can make someone’s life just a little bit better. That experience confirmed what I already felt in my heart. I plan to study biomedical engineering at Washington University in St. Louis this fall and spend my career creating technologies that restore health, independence, and dignity. Looking back, I realized every experience was pointing me in the same direction: serving others. As Lieutenant Governor for Key Club International’s Division 1, I worked with eight clubs and more than two hundred students across rural northern Maine. I discovered that leadership is not about having the loudest voice. It is about encouraging people to believe in themselves and make a difference in their communities. That same perspective shaped my community service. Through JustME for JustUS Rural and the League of Women Voters in Maine, I helped facilitate conversations about the challenges facing rural communities. I learned that before you can solve a problem, you have to understand the people living with it. Listening is often the most important first step. That idea stayed with me when I went to Taiwan this summer through the National Security Language Initiative for Youth (NSLI-Y) to study Mandarin. Living in another country pushed me far outside my comfort zone. I was welcomed into the home of a host family whose faith tradition was different from my own, yet they treated me like family. Their kindness reminded me that compassion and hospitality can bridge differences in language, culture, and even denomination. Instead of worrying about saying everything perfectly, I focused on building relationships. Kindness speaks every language. Before we can change someone’s life, we first have to value their story. Outside the classroom, tennis has taught me discipline long before it taught me competition. Showing up to practice, learning from losses, and encouraging my teammates taught me perseverance and humility. Those same habits help me in engineering, in my faith, and in every opportunity that I have to serve others. As I prepare to begin college, this scholarship would give me something incredibly valuable: time. During my senior year at MSSM, I balanced one of the school’s most demanding academic schedules while washing dishes in the cafeteria and tutoring other students to help pay for part of my room and board. Neither job felt small because both allowed me to contribute to the community that had invested so much in me. Those experiences taught me responsibility and perseverance, but receiving this scholarship would allow me to spend less time working and more time studying, learning from others, and preparing for a career serving others through biomedical engineering. I still think about that plastic water bottle. Most people saw a robotic hand picking something up. I saw someone getting back a small piece of independence and dignity. That is the kind of engineer I plan to become. I want to create technology that helps people live healthier, fuller lives, but I also want every person I meet to know they are valued. I believe God has given me a love for engineering, but more importantly, He has shown me that our gifts find their greatest purpose when we use them to love and serve others. I hope you will consider me for this scholarship because I want my life to reflect the same purpose that first inspired me when a prosthetic hand lifted a simple water bottle: using the gifts God has given me to restore independence, protect dignity, and bring hope to others.

Why I Am Passionate About Environmental Engineering I am a graduating senior at the Maine School of Science and Mathematics (MSSM) in Limestone, Maine. My interest in STEM really took off in middle school, when I received a Bioscience Association of Maine (BioME) scholarship to attend the MSSM summer camp. This fall, I will study environmental engineering at Washington University in St. Louis. I am drawn to environmental engineering because it combines my love of math and problem-solving with my desire to help people. It allows me to design systems that provide clean water, safe sanitation, and healthy ecosystems. Growing up in rural Maine, I saw firsthand how vital clean water is to a community. At MSSM, math was my anchor. I love its structure, logic, and the way difficult problems can be solved through persistence. Sharing it mattered, too. As a peer tutor in algebra and calculus, I worked with students who were unsure they were “math people.” Seeing them gain confidence changed my view of STEM: it's about access, encouragement, and belief. Those moments taught me that helping someone else gain confidence can be just as satisfying as solving a difficult problem myself. Outside of class, I sought ways to put my interest in STEM to work. During a University of Southern Maine internship, I helped build over 50 prosthetic hands and contributed to a provisional patent application. That experience showed me how engineering restores daily independence. On my MSSM robotics team, earning the Maine VEX Robotics Judges Award taught me the value of collaboration and iterative design. Through the NASA/Maine Space Grant CubeSat program, I worked on CAD design as part of a state-champion team, gaining experience turning ideas into systems that could solve real problems. Alongside that, I built a strong interest in environmental engineering and water systems. A middle school project studying vernal pools in Lovell, Maine first showed me how even small water systems shape entire ecosystems. Later, through the SELF engineering program, my team designed a renewable-energy-powered water purification system and earned the Best Design Award. Through 4-H aquaculture work, I studied kelp farming and its role in climate resilience and coastal health. These experiences showed me how deeply communities and ecosystems depend on healthy water systems. Experiences outside the classroom reinforced this perspective. At Baxter State Park through the Maine Youth Wilderness Leadership Program, I worked on conservation and stewardship. In Namibia at the N/a’an ku sê Sanctuary, I saw what happens when clean water and sanitation are limited. With the National Security Language Initiative for Youth (NSLI-Y) scholarship, I will study Mandarin in Taiwan this summer, building the skills to collaborate on global engineering problems. Throughout my experiences with math tutoring, prosthetics, CubeSats, and water systems, my motivation has remained consistent: solving problems that connect science to people. Growing up in rural Maine showed me how essential clean water and effective infrastructure are to community well-being, and I want to build systems that communities can depend on. The Julie Adams Memorial Scholarship is especially meaningful to me because it celebrates students who love mathematics and use that foundation to help others learn and grow. My experiences as a peer tutor showed me that math is not just about finding answers. It is also about giving others the confidence to tackle challenges they once thought were beyond them. My goal is to become an environmental engineer who builds clean water systems that strengthen communities. What has always motivated me is the challenge of solving problems, my love of math, and the opportunity to use both to improve people's lives.

Sustainability must guide environmental engineering because engineers' decisions shape people and ecosystems for generations. Clean water, reliable infrastructure, and healthy natural systems support human well-being. Yet pollution, population growth, and climate change threaten these resources. Environmental engineers tackle problems and design solutions that conserve resources and limit long-term ecological harm. Growing up in rural Maine fueled my interest in connecting water, sustainability, and public health. Lakes, rivers, and forests surrounded me, inspiring me to appreciate the natural resources that sustain our communities. As I encountered these challenges, I chose to focus on water because it shapes nearly every aspect of human and environmental health. Safe drinking water, effective wastewater treatment, and healthy aquatic ecosystems support communities. Water offers engineers an opportunity to drive lasting change in both human and environmental systems. One of my earliest environmental projects was a middle school vernal pool research study in my hometown of Lovell. By identifying and documenting seasonal wetlands, I learned how water quality and hydrology influence ecosystems. I also learned how even small environmental changes can have significant effects. This experience taught me that addressing environmental challenges requires understanding the connections between natural systems and human activities. Throughout high school at the Maine School of Science and Mathematics (MSSM), I sought opportunities to explore eco-friendly engineering solutions. At the Sustainable Engineering Leaders of the Future program at the University of Maine, my team earned the Best Design Award for a water purification project. Designing a system that balanced treatment effectiveness, energy use, and sustainability showed me that engineering solutions must be both environmentally responsible and practical. Through 4-H aquaculture research, I examined how regenerative kelp farming can support biodiversity. It can also strengthen coastal ecosystems and contribute to climate resilience. My understanding of sustainability deepened when I was selected from more than 130 applicants for the Maine Youth Wilderness Leadership Program at Baxter State Park, alongside 19 other students. During this backcountry experience, I trekked through remote wilderness, including Mount Katahdin, and completed conservation projects. For days, our group depended on filtered stream and well water. Knowing that our drinking water came directly from the surrounding watershed made water quality feel like a daily necessity and less like an environmental concept. My perspective broadened during a service trip to the N/a’an ku sê Wildlife Sanctuary in Namibia. While tracking wildlife and collecting habitat data, I observed how environmental stewardship affects both ecosystems and communities. Seeing environmental challenges in a completely different part of the world reinforced that access to clean water and healthy natural systems is a global issue. These experiences demonstrated that meaningful sustainability depends on both local action and global cooperation. Leadership experiences have also sharpened my understanding of sustainability. As Lieutenant Governor for Northern Maine Key Club programs, I coordinated students across eight clubs to organize service projects and strengthen community initiatives. These experiences showed me that lasting environmental progress relies on collaboration among engineers, communities, educators, and policymakers. This fall, I will attend Washington University in St. Louis to study environmental engineering. Looking ahead, my goal is to design resilient water treatment and distribution systems that directly improve public health. I am particularly interested in infrastructure that cuts waste, conserves energy, and expands clean water access. Combining engineering with leadership will allow me to build stronger communities while reducing their ecological footprint. Ultimately, sustainability is more than a metric; it is a baseline responsibility to future generations. Through environmental engineering, I plan to protect our watersheds, empower communities, and create a more sustainable world.

When I was younger, I thought my mother’s dermatologist appointment would be routine. My dad and I planned to meet her afterward for lunch, expecting an ordinary afternoon. Instead, she walked out of the doctor’s office in tears and told us she had skin cancer. Even though her doctors were optimistic, simply hearing the word “cancer” was terrifying. Until that moment, cancer was something I associated with other families. Suddenly, it was part of ours. At lunch, I watched my mother cry as she tried to process the diagnosis. The restaurant was quiet, but my thoughts were racing. I wanted to comfort her, yet I did not know what to say. That afternoon was the first time I understood how one word could instantly change a family’s sense of security. In the weeks that followed, I saw how a single diagnosis could unsettle every aspect of life. There were specialist appointments, difficult conversations, and the constant uncertainty of waiting for treatment. Even with a favorable prognosis, the fear and stress were very real. At the time of her surgery, I was away attending the Maine School of Science and Mathematics. Being away from home made me feel powerless. When I returned and saw the more than two-inch incision running down the side of her nose, I was struck by the physical reminder of what she had endured. The scar represented not only the surgery itself, but also the fear, uncertainty, and resilience that accompanied it. Not long afterward, my mother lost her job. Watching her recover while worrying about income, insurance, and future medical costs revealed how quickly illness can create financial instability. I learned that cancer affects far more than the body. It can disrupt a family’s emotional well-being, finances, and sense of security. These experiences shaped my ambitions. For me, engineering is more than a field of study; it is a way to solve meaningful problems and improve lives. I plan to study biomedical engineering and develop affordable medical technologies for underserved communities where healthcare and assistive devices are often out of reach. I want to design innovations that make treatment more accessible and less burdensome for families facing the same fears and challenges my family experienced. My mother’s cancer taught me strength, compassion, and the importance of using adversity as motivation to help others. Her strength transformed one of the most frightening moments of my childhood into a lasting sense of purpose. Receiving this scholarship would directly support my education in biomedical engineering by easing the financial burden of tuition and allowing me to focus on developing practical solutions for families in need. With this support, I will be able to continue pursuing my goal of making healthcare innovations accessible and honor the lessons my family learned through cancer.