The first time I had an anaphylactic reaction was when I was just turned 13. I have always been a victim the usual seasonal allergies and asthma but nothing like that. I remember watching the news because I was going to be on it for my small business. I was so excited but felt off. Before I knew it, I was struggling to breathe. We called 911 and the closest ambulance was over 20 minutes away. That was a situation no one should have to be in. My mother put me in the car and drove as fast as possible to the nearest hospital. Ever since then, I have been to numerous allergy doctors and specialist. I have been though countless test to try and figure out what caused my reaction. All of the test came up inconclusive. The doctors diagnosed me with a random onset anaphylaxis. As I gotten older, I have more and more episodes. Everywhere I go, I have to take a bag with multiple epi-pens, medicine, inhalers, and emergency contacts. I now have a reaction almost everyday, sometimes multiple times a day. I usually can tell when it is going to happen because it starts with really bad hives, so I take my medicine to prevent the reaction from progressing. Not only is my condition dangerous, but has affected various aspects of my life. I am always having to go for some sort of appointment, testing, or treatments. Every day, I am always worried when the reaction is going to strike. I always have to make sure I have my medications on me. I am always embarrassed when my skin swells and I have to rush out of a class to take medication. I do not want to have to have people asking if I am okay or need anything. I want to be able to be in situations where I do not have to worry about a reaction. That is when I decided that I am not going to let this hold me back. I knew that I wanted to pursue a career in nursing for a while now, but I wanted to start caring for people as soon as possible. I have job shadowed, attended healthcare camps, and volunteered as an auxiliary member with my fire department but I wanted more. Just then, I found out that I could start responding with my fire department to go to emergencies. This led me to enjoy the emergency setting. Because of that, I decided to apply to Penn State's Emergency Medical Technician school. Throughout my schooling, I greatly enjoyed getting all of my patient contacts. It made me realize just how many people there are that just need someone who wants the best outcome for them. As of December, I am a Nationally Registered EMT. Now, I volunteer my services at the local fire department and ambulance station. I am currently accepted into Penn State Altoona's BSN program. I am going to be starting nursing school in the fall of 2025. I am the first person in my family to go to collage, this makes me extremely grateful to have an opportunity to pursue my dream goal of being a nurse. While I am in nursing school, I am going to continue to volunteer in my community as a Firefighter and EMT. As a nurse, I think that I want to specialize in pediatrics or emergency medicine. I want to be a nurse who genuinely cares about their patients and I am not going to let any medical conditions hold me back from pursuing my dreams.

My most unforgettable outdoor adventure was my first tubing experience in Maine. The thrill of rushing through the frigid water, the wind whipping against my face, and the desire for that moment to last forever still lingers in my mind. That journey to Maine was a breathtaking blend of beauty, tranquility, and exhilaration. I was once someone who shied away from new experiences, avoiding the fast-paced chaos and the rush. But it was during that Maine trip that I discovered my love for the rush. But, the rush is not the only reason for me pursing a degree in nursing. Ever since I was a little girl, I have always had a fiery passion for helping others. I would do things like saving up my allowance to send supplies to solders or go into a nursing home to read to the residents. Since I was 9-years-old, I have raised dairy goats. One thing that this taught me was responsibility, of course, but most importantly, how to take care of something. No matter how bad the weather was, how tired I was, or how much I had on my schedule, I have always made time to make sure that they were well taken care of. Every time a goat got sick, I would be right there trying to do everything in my power to help it. While my grandfather was passing of cancer, I would always try to help take care of him. This brought both of us joy. After researching all of the different roles in healthcare, nursing stood out to me. This was because nursing seemed like a way that I could show my compassion the most. Once I realized my calling was to be a nurse, I was determined to dive in headfirst. I sought every opportunity to start making a difference in people's lives. I have job shadowed, attended healthcare camps, and volunteered as an auxiliary member with my local fire department but I wanted more. Just then, I found out that I could start responding with my fire department to go on fire and accident calls. The rush of being a first responder led me to know that I liked the emergency setting. Because of that, I decided to apply to Penn State Fayette's Emergency Medical Technician school. Throughout my schooling in emergency medicine, I greatly enjoyed getting all of my patient contacts. It made me realize just how many people there are that just need someone who is compassionate and wants the best outcome for them. As of December of 2024, I am a Nationally Registered EMT. Right now, I volunteer my services at the local fire department, and I have an apprenticeship at the local ambulance station until I am old enough to work for them. I am currently accepted into Penn State Altoona's BSN program. I am going to be starting nursing school in the fall of 2025. I am the first person in my family to go to collage, this makes me extremely grateful to have an opportunity to pursue my dream goal of being a nurse. While I am in nursing school, I am going to continue to volunteer in my community as a Junior Firefighter and an Emergency Medical Technician. As a nurse, I want to specialize in emergency medicine. All because of my trip to Maine, I found a passion for the rush of emergency medicine. As a nurse, EMT, and firefighter, I am ready to unleash my compassion in emergency situations.

When I was little I loved STEM. I also loved to help others. I would always do things like saving up my allowance to send supplies to solders or go into a nursing home to read to the residents. Since I was 9-years-old, I have raised dairy goats. One thing that this taught me was responsibility, of course, but most importantly, how to take care of something. No matter how bad the weather was, how tired I was, or how much I had on my schedule, I have always made time to make sure that they were well taken care. This led me to know that I wanted to be able to help people and make a difference in my community. I started by being devoted to school and joining community groups. I have been on the Claysburg Community Farm Show board for a few years now. With that I devote multiple weeks to plan and host an event that means a lot to my community. I am also an auxiliary member and a firefighter at my local volunteer station. I found this a great way to help my community out of times that where not so great. Responding to accident and fire calls made me see how much of a need there is for frontline medical professionals, this is what made me have an interest in nursing. I chose nursing mostly because I think that I will be able to show my passion for helping other people. I think that being a nurse will allow me the most patient contact so I can actually be the one taking care of them. I am currently accepted into Penn State Altoona's 4-year nursing program. I will be starting this fall, after I graduate high school. I am extremely excited to go to collage and start pursuing my dream of helping other people but, I want to start making a difference I'm people's lives sooner. After doing a lot of research on medical positions someone under 18-years-old can hold, I found close to nothing. Just when I thought that there was nothing for me to do, I came accost an Emergency Medical Technician class held at my local ambulance station. After completing my training, I passed both the national and state certification exams. I am now a Nationally Certified EMT. Even though I am not allowed to be employed as an EMT until I am 18, I volunteer at my fire department. I also go into the local ambulance center and volunteer to work. From working as an EMT, I have realized just how many people there are in my community who just need someone to show up in a rough time and help the out. This made me even more passionate about helping people because I realized how there is not many people in my community who is able to go into any situation and want to help a complete stranger no matter what. I think that this made me like nursing even more. Overall, I think that my passion for helping other people triggered my want to be a nurse. I have always had a want to help other people an any way possible but I found that I am most passionate about helping people medically. I want to be a nurse who is passionate about patient care. I want to be someone who will go out of their way to show that passion. I think that this passion I have that made me want to be a nurse will make me a nurse who genuinely cares about my patients.

My name is Alivia Snyder. I am a high-school Senior in Claysburg, Pennsylvania. I am planning to get my 4-year nursing degree at Penn State Altoona, starting this fall. Then I am planning on continuing my education to become a Nurse Practitioner. I chose nursing not for the sole reason that I love math and science but also because I love to help people. This want to help other people started when I was really young. I would do things like saving up my allowance to send supplies to solders or go into a nursing home to read to the residents. Since I was 9-years-old, I have raised dairy goats. One thing that this taught me was responsibility, of course, but most importantly, how to take care of something. No matter how bad the weather was, how tired I was, or how much I had on my schedule, I have always made time to make sure that they were well taken care. Every time a goat got sick, I would be right there trying to do everything in my power to make it better. I like to get involved with my community as well. I have been on the Claysburg Community Farm Show board for a few years now. With that I devote multiple weeks to fundraise, plan, and host an event that means a lot to my community. I am also a firefighter at my local volunteer fire department. For this I do help with all of their events and fundraisers but most importantly, I am one of the few people and my community who responds to incidents any hour of the day. I go on any fire or accident calls in my area, no matter what time it is or what I am doing. I am willing to stop what I am doing just to try to help someone out of a bad situation. Not only that, I am also a Nationally Certified Emergency Medical Technician. I use this mostly in my fire department because there are little to no medical personnel in my area. I think that because I have my EMT license, I will be able to do more for my community in a way that most people cannot. Once I turn 18, I will be able to work at my local ambulance station. This will allow me to consistently give back to my community be helping them out of their worst times. I think this compassion made me want to go into health care but, also my fascination with math and science. Math and science where always my favorite subjects. I have done so much research and presentations for events that I did not have to attend. I have given speeches on E. Coli, antibiotic resistance, the periodic table, the components of goat milk, the chemistry behind soap making, statistics in everyday life, and so much more. I was especially interested with the science behind medicine and the math behind drug dosing. I have attending so many healthcare camps about different treatments and how they work. I find this all very interesting. When I get my nursing license I want to use it to contribute to the field of science. I want to be able to use my knowledge to help people in any way possible. I want to learn how to treat people with chronic conditions. I want to be able to figure out new ways to save people by the means of math and science. I think that I will be able to do this as a nurse.

My name is Alivia Snyder. I am a high-school Senior in Claysburg, Pennsylvania. It is not a wealthy area, most people are not nice from where I live. Most of all, the school system is not good. From 1st to 4th-grade, I attended my local public school. I was severally bullied. I was only in 1st grade when this started. I was beat every day in the bathroom, I was thrown down steps, I was verbally abused to the point I was getting stomach ulcers, and no one in school would do anything about it. For 4 years this went on and everyone knew but the kids who where doing this had parents who where well known in my community. In 5th-grade my parents pulled me out and started homeschooling me. I found who I was, who I could be, I realized I was more than the girl who was to shy to stand up for herself. So, when I was around 9, I realized I wanted to raise dairy goats. When I finally started milking them I had to find something to do with all of the milk. Just then, I decided to try making soap. I gave it out as gift to close family. Before I knew it family from all over started ordering. Now, I am almost 18-years-old. I have my soaps sold in multiple stores, I have shipped to almost every state, I go to craft shows, and I also hold my own event. I have been in the newspaper, featured on the local news station, and am going to be in a book! But I did not stop there. I wanted to show my community how I could help them rise above not wanting to help each other. I became a firefighter at the Claysburg Volunteer Fire department. I go on all calls for accidents and fires to show my community that there are people who can genuinely care. Then I decided to apply to Penn State Fayette's Emergency Medical Technician school. Throughout my schooling in emergency medicine, I greatly enjoyed getting all of my patient contacts. Every time I would take a patient into the emergency room, I could see just how understaffed it was. It hurt to see patients who had to wait over 2 hours just to talk to someone about their chest pain. As of December of 2024, I am a Nationally Registered EMT. Right now, I volunteer my services at the local fire department and the local ambulance station. I always knew that I liked nursing but seeing how much of a need there is for it in my community made me realize how much I can do when I become a nurse. I am currently accepted into Penn State's 4-year nursing program. I am a first generation student and very proud to be able to have an opportunity to attend collage. I come from a middle class family, there is no federal or state funding I am eligible for. I am going to have to take a lot of loans out to be able to afford collage. This is the only thing that could hold me back from perusing my dream career. After I become a nurse, I want to be able to continue to give back to my community. I want to keep volunteering and helping people out of tough times. I think that because I was able to overcome obstacles, I can help other people overcome their personal obstacles too. Overall, I think that this will make me a better person and a better nurse.

Imagine someone who would go out of their way to help absolutely anyone. Someone who was always happy and always wanted the best for other people. Someone you could call at any time of the night and they would always show up with coffee, ready to help. Imagine someone so selfless, they would ignore their health to make sure everyone else was okay. For me, this was my Pap. He was the only family I had that truly cared about me. He was supportive of everything I did, he truly was the best family I could ever wish for. I always was so happy to see him every time he would come over but little did I know I wouldn't see him for long. In 2018, my Pap was diagnosed with cancer. I was too young to understand how bad it was. My Pap did not want me to know how bad it really was. He fought and fought cancer until it was impossible. He got really sick with in a few months of finding out he had cancer. I can remember going into visit him, he would just be laying weakly in bed trying to act tough to be okay for me. He did not want me to see him like that but I did not want to leave his side. I few weeks later it progressed and he was transferred to hospice. Then, I was still too little to understand what hospice was. My Pap understood his ending but still did not want to tell me. I would sit for hours talking to him about dreams I had. I wanted to be a contractor or architect just like him. He would tell me that when he got better, we would go build a cabin in my woods. We made a drawing of it and had it all laid out. I was so excited to be able to do this with him but it never got to happen. With in a few days he could not even talk. I would go in to see the nurses wetting his lips with a sponge. I then knew his outcome. I helped the nurses take care of him because I thought that maybe some way he would get better. Then he passed. When he passed, I was left with little to no family who cared. No one would pick up the phone or bring coffee over because they wanted to. No one would support me like he did. I lost my hope of being a contractor. But my Pap would always say that because one journey ended means another started. I then realized that I wanted to be able to take care of people like the nurses did to my pap. I wanted to be able to bring people comfort in bad times. I am currently accepted into Penn State's 4-year nursing program. I am a first generation student and super excited to start this new journey. I am ready for nursing school but wanted to start helping people now. Recently, I found out that I could start responding with my local fire department to go on fire and accident calls. This led me to enjoy the emergency setting. Because of that, I decided to apply to Emergency Medical Technician school. As of December, I am a Nationally Registered EMT. I volunteer my services at the local fire department, and the local ambulance station. I realized how losing close family can be a set back but it can also push you to be a better person for them.

What does it mean to be a leader? For me, I think that a leader is someone who is showing others what they are capable of. I think that a leader and someone devoted to science will someday change the world. I think that the world we are in now needs a leader to show the next generation how to push through hard times and be all they can be. We all have had someone we look up to for guidance. They are our leaders. They have told us to keep our confidence and keep trying. They have showed us how to live and how to peruse our dreams. I think that leadership is going to shape our future. I do not think that a true leader is a popular singer or a politician. They are not right beside us reminding us that everything will be okay and trying to change something that may seem impossible. This is where I think science comes into play. I think that science is going to change the future. I believe one day we will scientifically find out how to make things not be impossible. I think that one day every person in America will be able to not live with any medical conditions that where once found to be impossible to treat. This is where I think I can help. I am already a leader. I have so many people in my life that look up to me. I am devoted to everything I do. I am a scholarly student who loves science and mathematics. I am in the National Honor Society and keep an almost perfect GPA. Every chance I get to continue my education, I take it. But not only that, I get involved in my community. I have been on the Claysburg Community Farm Show board for a few years. I devote multiple weeks to fundraise, plan, and host an event that means a lot to my community. I am a firefighter at my local fire department. I am a Nationally Certified Emergency Medical Technician and use that to help at accidents with my fire department and I also volunteer at the local ambulance station. I do those things and many more to show my community what it means to be a leader, what it means to be involved and want to help people. I also started my own business. When I was 9-years old, I started to raise dairy goats, milk them, and then try to use their milk in the most resourceful way. I decided to try making soap. I started to give it out as gift to close family. Before I knew it family and friends from all over started ordering. Now, I am almost 18-years-old. I have my soaps sold in multiple stores accost Pennsylvania, I have shipped to almost ever state, I go to almost every craft show, and I also hold my own event at my farm. I think that from all of this, I learned that I wanted to help people. That I why I am choosing to major in nursing. I am currently accepted into a 4 year nursing program at Penn State Altoona. After I become a nurse I am planning on using leadership and science to make a difference in my patient's lives and the healthcare system. I want to make healthcare more. I want to make it somewhere where people can go in knowing they will get the best care possible. I want to be someone who can use science to fix things. I want to be a leader.

My name is Alivia Snyder. I am a high-school Senior in Claysburg, Pennsylvania. It is not a wealthy area, most people are not nice from where I live. Most of all, the school system is not good. From kindergarden to 4th-grade, I attended my local public school. I was severally bullied. I was only in 1st grade when this started. I was beat every day in the bathroom, I was thrown down steps, I was verbally abused to the point I was getting stomach ulcers, and no one in school would do anything about it. For 4 years this went on and everyone knew but the kids who where doing this had parents who where well known in my community. In 5th-grade my parents pulled me out and started homeschooling me. I found who I was, who I could be, I realized I was more than the girl who was to shy to stand up for herself. So, when I was around 9, I realized I wanted to raise dairy goats. When I finally started milking them I had to find something to do with all of the milk. Just then, I decided to try making soap. I gave it out as gift to close family. Before I knew it family from all over started ordering. Now, I am almost 18-years-old. I have my soaps sold in multiple stores, I have shipped to almost every state, I go to craft shows, and I also hold my own event. I have been in the newspaper, featured on the local news station, and am going to be in a book! But I did not stop there. I wanted to show my community how I could help them rise above not wanting to help each other. I became a firefighter at the Claysburg Volunteer Fire department. I go on all calls for accidents and fires to show my community that there are people who can genuinely care. Then I decided to apply to Penn State Fayette's Emergency Medical Technician school. Throughout my schooling in emergency medicine, I greatly enjoyed getting all of my patient contacts. Every time I would take a patient into the emergency room, I could see just how understaffed it was. It hurt to see patients who had to wait over 2 hours just to talk to someone about their chest pain. As of December of 2024, I am a Nationally Registered EMT. Right now, I volunteer my services at the local fire department and the local ambulance station. I always knew that I liked nursing but seeing how much of a need there is for it in my community made me realize how much I can do when I become a nurse. I am currently accepted into Penn State's 4-year nursing program. I am a first generation student and very proud to be able to have an opportunity to attend collage. I come from a middle class family, there is no federal or state funding I am eligible for. I am going to have to take a lot of loans out to be able to afford collage. This is the only thing that could hold me back from perusing my dream career. After I become a nurse, I want to be able to help the local school district by making sure that all kids are treated the same. I want to make sure that if they do face bullying, something is done even if the last name is significant. No kid ever needs to go through what I did in school. School should be a safe place.

I am planning to get my 4-year nursing degree at Penn State Altoona, starting this fall. Then I am planning on continuing my education to become a Nurse Practitioner after I am done studying at Penn State. I know that this is not an entrepreneurial major but I have a plan of making it one. When I was 9-years old, I started to raise dairy goats. I would raise them, milk them, and then try to use all of their milk in the most resourceful way. After a month of milking, I realized that there is only so much milk that a person can drink so I needed to find something better to do with it. Just then, I decided to try making soap. Once I made soap, I started to give it out as gift to close family. Before I knew it family and friends from all over said it was the best soap they have ever used and they started ordering. Then, natural soap was something you could never find in my area. I saw the need for it and came up with a simple conclusion, start my own business. Yes, everyone thought I was crazy or that my parents where doing it for me but I knew that I would be able to do it. Now, I am almost 18-years-old. I make soap, lotion, lotion bars, chapstick, scrubs, and so much more. I have my soaps sold in multiple stores accost Pennsylvania, I have shipped to almost ever state, I go to almost every craft show, and I also hold my own event at my farm. I have been in the newspaper multiple times, I have been featured on the local news station, and I am going to be in a book published this year! All of these things led me to know that I can really make something with what I have started. I know that a business degree would be able to give me the knowledge that I need to grow my business but I know that some sort of medical degree would allow me to target the kind of people my soap would help the most. I found that a lot of my customers are people who truly have a bad skin condition. I also found that a lot of my customers have had cancer and the aftermath of their treatments ruined their skin. I think that when I become a nurse, I will be able to offer my soaps to these kinds of people. I think that I will be able to make my soap more specific to different people and their struggles with my knowledge form becoming a nurse as well. I would say that a successful life for me would be me working as a nurse practitioner, possibly having my own practice. I would have my own business still but my soaps would be specialized to help aid with different skin types. I can see myself working as a nurse but at the same time continuing my passion for entrepreneurship by continuing the legacy of my business I have had since I was just a little girl.

Ever since I was a little girl, I have had I fiery passion about helping others. I would always do things like saving up my allowance to send supplies to solders or go into a nursing home to read to the residents. Since I was 9-years-old, I have raised dairy goats. One thing that this taught me was responsibility, of course, but most importantly, how to take care of something. No matter how bad the weather was, how tired I was, or how much I had on my schedule, I have always made time to make sure that they were well taken care. This led me to know that I wanted to be able to help people and make a difference in my community. First, I started by being devoted to school and joining community groups. I have been on the Claysburg Community Farm Show board for a few years now. With that I devote multiple weeks to plan and host an event that means a lot to my community. I am also an auxiliary member and a firefighter at my local volunteer station. I found this a great way to help my community out of times that where not so great. Responding to accident and fire calls made me see how much of a need there is for frontline medical professionals, this is what made me have an interest in nursing. I chose nursing mostly because I think that I will be able to show my passion for helping other people. I think that being a nurse will allow me the most patient contact so I can actually be the one taking care of them and interacting with them. I am currently accepted into Penn State Altoona's 4-year nursing program. I will be starting this fall, after I graduate high school. I am extremely excited to go to collage and start pursuing my dream of helping other people but, I want to start making a difference I'm people's lives sooner. After doing a lot of research on medical positions someone under 18-years-old can hold, I found close to nothing. Just when I thought that there was nothing for me to do, I came accost an Emergency Medical Technician class held at my local ambulance station. After completing my training, I passed both the national and state certification exams. I am now a Nationally Certified EMT. Even though I am not allowed to be employed as an EMT until I am 18, I volunteer at my volunteer fire department. I also go into the local ambulance center and volunteer to work. From working as an EMT, I have realized just how many people there are in my community who just need someone to show up in a rough time and help the out. This made me even more passionate about helping people because I realized how there is not many people in my community who is able to go into any situation and want to help a complete stranger no matter what. I think that this made me like nursing even more. Overall, I think that my passion for helping other people triggered my want to be a nurse. I have always had a want to help other people an any way possible but I found that I am most passionate about helping people medically. I want to be a nurse who is passionate about patient care. I want to be someone who will go out of their way to show that passion. I think that this passion I have that made me want to be a nurse will make me a nurse who genuinely cares about my patients.

I think that everything I have done in my life has been because of my faith in God. I think that this is because no matter how hard life got, my faith was always there pushing me back into the light. Every time something would be going bad, I knew I could fall back on my faith and it would be alright. I think that having my faith has taught me about wanting to help other people out of dark or scary times as well. I have always had an intrust in the medical field but wanted a position with the most patient contact so I could spread my faith through genuine kindness. I felt that nursing is the best option for me to be able to do that. So, I applied and have been accepted in to a few local nursing schools. I know that this Fall is not that far away but, I wanted to start helping people sooner. I have been a member of my fire department for a while now but I wanted to do more. I decided to become a Jr. Firefighter and start running with them on calls. I loved helping people that way but still wanted to help them by using my passion for the medical field. After doing research I realized that there is not a lot that a 17-year-old can do medically for a person. Just when I prayed about it an Emergency Medical Technician class came up at my local ambulance station. Recently, I passed my National Registry and State Registry exams and am now an EMT. Since I am not 18 yet, I cannot officially be employed anywhere so I just go into the ambulance station and volunteer. After seeing some of my patients, what they are going through, and how some of them do not have family or someone to care it is very sad. Some of them just needed someone to show up and care for them with a smile on their face. I feel that when I show up to a patient's home and really try to listen to them and do everything in my power to help make them feel better it brings another level of joy to that person. I think that my faith has always taught me to be able to care for a person and respect them no matter where they come from or what kind of situation they are in. This really helped me throughout my career in emergency medicine. I also find joy in teaching others about faith and God. For over 2 years now I am one of the main kids group teachers at my church. I think that even though I am to one doing the teaching, it has taught me to be closer to God and to lean on him more as I am making some of the most important decisions for my life. I feel that when I am in nursing school, this fall, I will be able to bring my light into collage and spread it to others who might not have faith. I think that when I complete the four year nursing program at Penn State, I will be able to show my light through my work. I feel that I will be a nurse that patients will want to have because of my faith. I want to let my faith guide my career where it is needed most. I think that this will help me with my career and help me grow my personal faith.

Ever since I was little, I have had a fiery passion for helping people. I would always do things like saving up my allowance to send supplies to solders or go into a nursing home to read to the residents. Since I was 9-years-old, I have raised dairy goats. One thing that this taught me was responsibility, of course, but most importantly, how to take care of something. No matter how bad the weather was, how tired I was, or how much I had on my schedule, I have always made time to make sure that they were well taken care. This led me to know that I wanted to be able to help people and make a difference in my community. First, I started by being devoted to school and joining community groups. I have been on the Claysburg Community Farm Show board for a few years now. With that I devote multiple weeks to plan and host an event that means a lot to my community. I am also an auxiliary member and a firefighter at my local volunteer station. I found this a great way to help my community out of times that where not so great. Responding to accident and fire calls made me see how much of a need there is for frontline medical professionals, this is what made me have an intrust in nursing. I think that nursing will allow me to show my compassion the most. I am currently accepted into Penn State's 4-year nursing program. I will be starting this fall, right after high school. I know that it is only a short amount of time until I am able to help more people in a medical setting but I wanted to start right away. I quickly found out there is not a lot of options in the medical field for high school seniors who are not 18 yet. Just when I have almost lost hope, I came across and Emergency Medical Technician program in my area. Recently, I have made it through my class and I am now a Nationally Registered EMT. I am currently volunteering at a local ambulance station and at my local fire department to use my new found skills to help my community even more. I think that all of my volunteering experiences has benefited me greatly as a person. There is something special about helping a complete stranger out of a bad time. From my experience, there is always going to be a bad call where you wish you could have done more but, at least you can always say at least you showed up and did everything you could. I think that every person has an opportunity to do good no matter how big or small. I think that anything good that a person does will be rewarding in some way. Eventually, when I graduate nursing school, I am planning on continuing all of my service for my self but most importantly for my community.

I found sports and high school a challenging combination but, i'm not the type of person to turn down a challenge. You want to be a stellar student along with an athlete. I found this especially hard when your school district does not offer the sport you are passionate about. For me, this was rifle. No school in my area had a rifle team and if they did, they would not let me shoot on it because I am cyber schooled. But that didn't stop me from wanting to peruse my passion. For over 4 years now, I have shot for 4-H, CMP, NRA, Blair county sharpshooters, Beaver gun club, and Portage Rifle Team. I am a devoted marksmen. I participate in local, regional, postal, and state competitions. I train almost everyday for at least 3 hours. The past few years I have taken nothing less than 3rd place at my state competitions. This past year, I have had the amazing privilege of qualifying and participating in the 2024 4-H Air Rifle National Tournament. This was held half way across the country in Grand Island, Nebraska. The competition was over a week long and it was filled with non-stop shooting matches. There was about 1,000 kids there overall from all over the United States. It was an amazing experience that I will always be grateful for. But not only am I devoted to my sports, I am a very scholarly student as well. Right now, I am a senior at 21st Century Cyber Charter School. Being cyber schooled has taught me to be dedicated to learning and most of all, how to be a good student. Through out high school I have taken all honors and advanced placement classes. I have maintained and almost perfect GPA and never gotten a grade less than a B+. I am in the National Honor Society as well. This requires me to keep high grades, show leadership, and have at least 30 hours of community service a year. Since 9th grade, I have managed to meet all of the criteria for NHS. I am currently accepted into Penn State for their 4 year nursing program. I am going to be starting collage in the fall of this year. I am extremely excited to be a first generation student and to pursue my dream of helping my community as a nurse. One thing that I have learned as a student-athlete is that if I put my mind to it anything is possible. I never thought that competing at a Notional level would be an oppertunity I would ever have, but yet I made it possible by practicing. I think that because of that, it shows how no matter what situation you are in or how busy you are, everyone can succeed. Since I have done that, now I know I can do more. I recently went through an Emergency Medical Technician program and became Nationally certified. I also became a Jr. firefighter at my local fire department. I did both of those things to give back to my community for supporting me through out my high school and sportsmanship years. Overall, there are many challenges of being a student-athlete. Things like balancing practices, homework, grades, and time all affect any student-athlete. At the same time it is rewarding. I learned disciplined and how to be devoted to something. I also learned how much people will support you as long as you are trying to better yourself. I think all of these things combined together show how greatly challenging but yet rewarding being a student-athlete is.

I found sports and high school a challenging combination. You want to be a stellar student along with a great athlete. I found this especially hard when your school district does not offer the sport you live for. For me, this was rifle. No school in my area had a rifle team and if they did, they would not let me shoot on it because I am cyber schooled. But that didn't stop me from wanting to peruse my passion. For over 4 years now, I have shot for 4-H, CMP, NRA, Blair county sharpshooters, Beaver gun club, and Portage Rifle Team. I am a devoted and passionate marksmen. I participate in all local, regional, postal, and state competitions. I train almost everyday for at least 3 hours. The past few years I have taken nothing less than 3rd place at my state competitions. This past year, I have had the amazing privilege of qualifying and participating in the 2024 4-H Air Rifle National Tournament. This was held half way across the country in Grand Island, Nebraska. The competition was over a week long and it was filled with non-stop shooting matches. There was about 1,000 kids there overall from all over the United States. It was an amazing experience that I will always be grateful for. But not only am I devoted to my sports, I am a very scholarly student as well. Right now, I am a high school senior at 21st Century Cyber Charter School. Being cyber schooled has taught me to be dedicated to learning, how to stick to a schedule, and most of all, how to be a good student. Through out high school I have taken all honors and advanced placement classes. I have maintained and almost perfect GPA and never gotten a grade less than a B+. I am in the National Honor Society as well. This requires me to keep high grades, show leadership, and have at least 30 hours of community service a year. Since 9th grade, I have managed to meet all of the criteria for NHS. I am currently accepted into Penn State for their 4 year nursing program. I am going to be starting collage in the fall of this year. I am extremely excited to be a first generation student and to pursue my dream of helping my community as a nurse. One thing that I have learned as a student-athlete is that if I put my mind to it anything is possible. I never thought that competing at a Notional level would be an oppertunity I would ever have, but yet I made it possible by practicing. I think that because of that, it shows how no matter what situation you are in or how busy you are, everyone can succeed. Since I have done that, now I know I can do more. I recently went through an Emergency Medical Technician program and became Nationally certified. I also became a Jr. firefighter at my local fire department. I did both of those things to give back to my community for supporting me through out my high school and sportsmanship years. Overall, there are many challenges of being a student-athlete. Things like balancing practices, homework, grades, and time all affect any student-athlete. At the same time it is rewarding. I learned disciplined and how to be devoted to something. I also learned how much people will support you as long as you are trying to better yourself. I think all of these things combined together show how greatly challenging but yet rewarding being a student-athlete is.

I have always been very passionate about wanting to pursue a higher education. When I was a younger, I would always want to learn new things and help others. What made me want to purse a higher education was that I loved to help people but I wanted to do it in a way where I could really have to power to make a difference. This want to help other people started when I was really young. I would do things like saving up my allowance to send supplies to solders or go into a nursing home to read to the residents. Since I was 9-years-old, I have raised dairy goats. One thing that this taught me was responsibility, of course, but most importantly, how to take care of something. No matter how bad the weather was, how tired I was, or how much I had on my schedule, I have always made time to make sure that they were well taken care. Every time a goat got sick, I would be right there trying to do everything in my power to make it better. I like to get involved with my community as well. I have been on the Claysburg Community Farm Show board for a few years now. With that I devote multiple weeks to fundraise, plan, and host an event that means a lot to my community. All of this led me to know that I wanted to pursue a career in healthcare. After researching all of the different roles in healthcare, nursing stood out to me. This was because nursing seemed like a way that I could show my compassion the most. I have prepared myself to be a first generation student by pushing myself to achieve academically. Right now, I am a Senior in high school. I take all honors classes along with a few advanced placement classes. I have been able to maintain a high GPA throughout my years in high school. I am also in the national honor society, for this I have to complete over 30 service hours a year along with keeping my grades over a B plus. I have always enjoyed learning new things since I was little. I would always take extra classes and push myself to do good in them. After pushing myself to do good in school I realized that I could do this good at a collage level. Right now, I am accepted into Penn State's 4-year nursing program and I am starting in the fall. I am extreamly excited to start this new journey as a first generation collage student.

I have always exemplified a spirit of excellence. Ever since I was young I had a fiery drive to excel and stand out. When I was 8-years old, I had a passion for agriculture, so I decided to do something about it. I got two dairy goats, but I wanted more. So then I decided I wanted a goat in milk. After milking goats I still wanted more. I decided to make soap with the goat milk. I gave it out as gifts at Christmas to family. My family loved it so much they started to order it from me. One order led to the next and then I realized I could do something with it. By the time I was 9, I started my own goat milk product business. I go to craft shows all over Pennsylvania, have my own store, sell it in multiple stores, and I ship my orders accost the country. Now I have had my business for over 8 years. One thing farming and entrepreneurship has taught me is how to excel. Doing all of this since I was 9, made me want to be different, it made me want to do well and stand out. But I did not stop there. I have also always given back to my community. When I was very young I would do things like take my allowance to make care packages for soldiers or go into nursing homes to read to the residents. I currently consistently give back to my community. I participate in the local community theater. For this I would help fundraise and build props to help keep my community entertained. I also would participate in the plays as an actor. I have held many roles in theater. I am also the chairman of the antique department of the Claysburg Community Farm Show. For this event I devote weeks to planning, setting up, organizing, judging, and fundraising for the event. This event was a dying tradition in my community because none of the younger generation wants to participate. I want to change that. I am constantly telling people about it and raising awareness to younger children so this will loved event can still continue. I am also a firefighter at my local volunteer fire department. For this I do help with all of their events and fundraisers but most importantly, I am one of the few people and my community who responds to incidents any hour of the day. I go on any fire or accident calls in my area, no matter what time it is or what I am doing. I am willing to stop what I am doing just to try to help someone out of a bad situation. Not only that, I am also a Nationally Certified Emergency Medical Technician. I use this mostly in my fire department because there are little to no medical personnel in my area. I think that because I have my EMT license, I will be able to do more for my community in a way that most people cannot. Once I turn 18, I will be able to work at my local ambulance station. This will allow me to consistently give back to my community be helping them out of their worst times. I think all of this together shows how I can continue Harriett's spirit of excellence and drive to give back to her community.

I have always been driven to help people in any way that I could, no matter the circumstances. When I was little, I would do things like saving up my hard earned allowance to send supplies to solders or go into a nursing home to read to the residents just to make them smile. Since I was 9, I raised dairy goats and started my own business using their milk to make different products. One thing that this taught me was responsibility, of course, but most importantly, how to take care of something. No matter how bad the weather was, how tired I was, or how much I had on my schedule, I have always made time to make sure that they were well taken care of. I like to get involved with my community. I have volunteered over 200 hours of service within the past few years. I help host events, set up food drives, support the local animal shelters, take care of the elderly, and much more. A few years ago, my grandfather passed of cancer. It was sickening to see how there was hardly any help from any healthcare professionals. I want to be able to change that. All of this led me to know that I wanted to pursue a career in something that I could continue my passion for helping people, I wanted to work in healthcare. After researching all of the different roles in healthcare, nursing stood out to me. This was because nursing seemed like a way that I could show my compassion the most. I knew that I wanted to pursue a career in nursing for a while now, but I wanted to start caring for people as soon as possible. I found there is not a lot someone under the age of 18 can do. I have job shadowed, attended healthcare camps, and volunteered as an auxiliary member with my local fire department but I wanted more. Just then, I found out that I could start responding with my fire department to go on fire and accident calls as a junior firefighter. This led me to enjoy the emergency setting. Because of that, I decided to apply to Penn State Fayette's Emergency Medical Technician school. Throughout my schooling in emergency medicine, I greatly enjoyed getting all of my patient contacts.Every time I would take a patient into the emergency room, I could see just how understaffed it was. It hurt to see patients who had to wait over 2 hours just to talk to someone about their chest pain. It made me realize just how many people there are that just need someone who wants the best outcome for them. As of December of 2024, I am a Nationally Registered EMT. Right now, I volunteer my services at the local fire department, and I am applying to the local ambulance station to further my services. I am currently accepted into Penn State Altoona's BSN program. I am going to be starting nursing school in the fall of 2025. I am the first person in my family to go to collage, this makes me extremely grateful to have an opportunity to pursue my dream. While I am in nursing school, I am going to continue to volunteer in my community as a Junior Firefighter and an Emergency Medical Technician. After obtaining my BSN, I plan on specializing in emergency, OBGYN, or pediatrics. I plan on making a difference in my community by doing this because I see a true need for nurses who genuinely care for their patients.

I have always been very driven about helping other people. When I was a child, I would do things like saving up my allowance to send supplies to solders or go into a nursing home to read to the residents just to see them smile. Since I was 9-years-old, I have raised dairy goats. One thing that this taught me was responsibility, of course, but most importantly, how to take care of something. No matter how bad the weather was, how tired I was, or how much I had on my schedule, I have always made time to make sure that they were well taken care. Every time a goat got sick, I would be right there trying to do everything in my power to make it better. In 2019, my grandfather was passing of cancer. Any free time after school I had, I would be right there beside him trying to bring him joy and make him as comfortable as possible. I like to get involved with my community as well. I am in National Honor Society, and devote all of my service requirements to trying to make a difference in my community. All of this led me to know that I wanted to pursue a career in healthcare, specifically nursing because I feel that I can show my compassion the most by becoming a nurse. I knew that I wanted to pursue a career in healthcare for a while now, but I wanted to start caring for people as soon as possible. There is not a lot that a high school senior can do, especially when they are still under the age of 18. I have job shadowed, attended healthcare camps, and volunteered as an auxiliary member with my fire department but I wanted more. Recently, I found out that I could start responding with my local fire department to go on fire and accident calls. This led me to enjoy the emergency setting. Because of that, I decided to apply to Penn State Fayette's Emergency Medical Technician school. Throughout my schooling in emergency medicine, I greatly enjoyed getting all of my patient contacts. It made me realize just how many people there are that just need someone who wants the best outcome for them. As of December of 2024, I am a Nationally Registered EMT. I volunteer my services at the local fire department, and I am applying to the local ambulance station once I turn 18-years-old. I am currently accepted into Penn State Altoona's BSN program. I am going to be starting nursing school in the fall of 2025, right out of high school. I am the first person in my family to go to collage, this makes me extremely grateful to have an opportunity to pursue my dream goal of being a nurse. While I am in nursing school, I am going to continue to volunteer in my community as a Junior Firefighter and an Emergency Medical Technician. After obtaining my BSN, I plan on showing my compassion for healthcare. I want to continue my passion for helping others in the nursing field. I want to be able to help my patients out of a time when they are not their best. I want to be able to bring a smile to their face when they feel bad. I plan on showing my compassion and kindness to every single patient I have, no matter the situation. I am going to be devoted to making sure they have the best possible outcome. I want to be a someone who genuinely cares about their patients.

I have always been very passionate about helping people. When I was a young child, I would do things like saving up my allowance to send supplies to solders or go into a nursing home to read to the residents. Since I was 9-years-old, I have raised dairy goats. One thing that this taught me was responsibility, of course, but most importantly, how to take care of something. No matter how bad the weather was, how tired I was, or how much I had on my schedule, I have always made time to make sure that they were well taken care of. Every time a goat got sick, I would be right there trying to do everything in my power to help it. While my grandfather was passing of cancer, I would always try to help take care of him. This brought both of us joy. I am also involved with my community. I have been on the Claysburg Community Farm Show board for a few years. I devote multiple weeks to fundraise, plan, and host an event that means a lot to my community. All of this led me to want to pursue a career in healthcare. After researching all of the different roles in healthcare, nursing stood out to me. This was because nursing seemed like a way that I could show my compassion the most. I knew that I wanted to pursue a career in nursing for a while now, but I wanted to start caring for people as soon as possible. I have job shadowed, attended healthcare camps, and volunteered as an auxiliary member with my local fire department but I wanted more. Just then, I found out that I could start responding with my fire department to go on fire and accident calls. This led me to enjoy the emergency setting. Because of that, I decided to apply to Penn State Fayette's Emergency Medical Technician school. Throughout my schooling in emergency medicine, I greatly enjoyed getting all of my patient contacts. It made me realize just how many people there are that just need someone who is compassionate and wants the best outcome for them. As of December of 2024, I am a Nationally Registered EMT. Right now, I volunteer my services at the local fire department, and I am applying to the local ambulance station to further my services. I am currently accepted into Penn State Altoona's BSN program. I am going to be starting nursing school in the fall of 2025. I am the first person in my family to go to collage, this makes me extremely grateful to have an opportunity to pursue my dream goal of being a nurse. While I am in nursing school, I am going to continue to volunteer in my community as a Junior Firefighter and an Emergency Medical Technician. As a nurse, I think that I want to specialize in pediatrics or emergency medicine. After obtaining my BSN, I plan on showing my compassion for healthcare. I want to continue Breanna's passion in the nursing field. I want to be a nurse that patients will not forget. I want to be able to help them out of a time when they are not their best. I want to be able to bring a smile to their face when they feel bad. I plan on showing my compassion and kindness to every single patient I have, no matter the situation. I am going to be devoted to making sure they have the best possible outcome. I want to be a nurse who genuinely cares about their patients.