Every Registered Nurse I have met has been so dedicated to their work and drive for being better everyday. I always thought to myself, how can I be just like that? My name is Amber Morgan and I am a current freshman at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) majoring in Pre-Nursing. I plan to go into the Nursing program and will hopefully find out my acceptance this May. I am a current child swim instructor seeking to help children find safety in the water. As well as experience as a summer lifeguard with CPR and Basic Life Support certification. Outside of class and work I am actively seeking ways to help my community. Whether that is community work or as little as giving to the county. My strive for becoming a nurse came about when I noticed my family needing help. I wanted to be there for them emotionally as well as medically. Focusing on my dad who is an alcoholic. I didn’t know it at the time but I was always helping him in little ways. Helping him made me realize how much I wanted to help not only people like him, but everyone that I could. In high school, I started my healthcare journey by taking an Emergency Medical Services (EMS) class. This class encouraged me to forward my career in healthcare by showing me the urgent care side of it. With taking this class, it has given me so much respect for Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT) since they are the start of someone staying at a hospital. Even if a patient doesn’t make it to the hospital, EMT’s are there to help on their journey at their home. Taking this class has given me insight to help my father. Even if it was little things like correct ways to help him up after a fall or the best way to wrap up a wound. Being able to help him allowed me to understand that even though my father and I don’t have the best relationship, I can still help him to the best of my abilities. With that being said, I would like to further my education by getting my BSN at VCU. By obtaining my BSN, RN I will be able to not only help my dad, but others that I come into contact with at the hospital. In nursing school, I plan to put my all into class as well as clinicals. I believe clinicals will give me the hands-on experience that I seek for. With having the need to make a change in healthcare by giving more light to the nursing career path. Nurses are so important, whether they are first at your bedside or the one that helps one to take their medicine. I want to be that nurse. I want to be able to help people do the little things that will allow them to go throughout their day. After graduating nursing school, I plan to work for a couple years in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) then go back to school to obtain a Nurse Practitioner degree. As I stated before, I want to be able to help people to the best of my abilities. By obtaining a Nursing Practitioner degree, I will be able to educate myself further with the nursing path and take it the farthest I can. I moved to Virginia in 2022 to a small county right outside of Richmond called New Kent. This town has limited access to healthcare that isn’t 30 minutes out. Thankfully, VCU has an urgent care located in the town which allows transportation to the main VCU hospital located in Richmond. This urgent care is what introduced me to VCU. I saw their drive to help places all throughout Virginia and I want to be a part of that. Which is why I applied to VCU and plan to graduate here. Graduating from VCU will allow me to give my community the help that they need. I believe VCU will give me the knowledge and experience I need to do so. My first year here is coming to an end and I am so thankful for the opportunity to go to a college as big as this and educate myself with all the amazing people that go here. Obtaining my BSN, RN here will truly be an honor by allowing me to help the people of Richmond. Ultimately, this scholarship will help me comfortably go into nursing school with the meaningful education that will allow me to help the city of Richmond. Allowing myself to grow outside of the small town of New Kent and have more influence on the help of others. Being able to work with children in the water has given me so much insight into helping others for their safety. Giving me the strive to help with others safety in the hospital. As well as the need to help others like my dad that are in need of help without knowing it. The legacy of Nancy Balmediano Shirley will live on throughout all the hard working nurses throughout the country and I cannot wait to be a part of it.