"Education is the key to success and your way out of poverty". These are words my mother would repeatedly say every day, and those are words that I lived by, for if it wasn't for those words, I would've given up a long time ago. I moved to the United States in 2017 and was faced with the usual hardship any black American faced, " racism", but that did not stop me from my focus and that was getting a good education to get out of poverty. In 2019 I started filling out a FASFA form to see if I was eligible for free tuition. At first, everything that could go wrong went wrong, they found me not eligible, I was rather confused because I was an American citizen in need of aid with no mother or father to rely on. Eventually, someone heard my cry, and I was granted my aid, I was excited to get the chance to go to school and get an education. It was tedious working fifty-plus hours and going to school. There were days when I didn’t know how I was going to get to school or what I was going to eat that day, but I kept pushing for success. College is very important to me because it is a big stepping stone to where I want to be, it is a major factor in shaping my future and my way out of poverty. College may not make me rich or grant me jewels but it prepares you for the reality of the everyday world. College is also important to me because many children back home in Grenada do not have the resources to go to college, and that is one of the reasons I am grateful to receive an education. Every day I count myself grateful to be able to go to school and shape my future for the better. My degree in Biology can have a great impact on my family and my community, I want to become a veterinarian in the future, not only do I want to help animals but educate my nation on the proper care of our beloved animals. When I become a veterinarian, I want to host free animal clinics in Grenada at least twice a year. I want farmers and pet owners to have the opportunity to have healthy animals and livestock without having to break an arm and a leg to afford healthcare. I have been through so much but I have made it so far, 17 year old me would be proud of how many challenges I have overcome. My education would not be in vain but would take me and my family out of poverty.