My name is Angelina Kalinyuk, and I wanted to start off by saying thank you so much for reading my essay. I am a first generation born American citizen, as my parents escaped the Soviet Union and came to America when they were only 15 and 16 years old. When they got married, they heard the news that their first child (my oldest sister) was going to be born with spina bifida, a disorder where the spine forms abnormally and can hinder how the child walks in the future. This was scary to my parents since at that time very little was known about these disorders, and they didn’t have computers on which they could find more research. When she was a year old, she was unfortunately misdiagnosed with the stomach flu when, in reality, her right lung was filling up with fluid until she couldn’t breathe anymore. The medical staff began doing CPR on her once she coded, and, by the grace of God, she came back. She was never the same, unfortunately, as she was no longer able to eat or talk anymore and was paralyzed from the waist down. My sister was in my life until just 3 years ago when she passed away from an accumulation of fluids in her lungs. My sister taught me so much in life and helped me develop a love for special needs individuals specifically, as well as a love for the medical field, since we would constantly be in and out of doctor’s offices and hospitals. My sister taught me the value of having patience and kindness towards people because everyone is going through something that no one may know. Watching my parents care for and love my sister with unconditional love was also very humbling to see, even though each day presented with its own unique challenges. My sister taught me the importance of being responsible and accountable because my sister wasn’t able to do things on her own and constantly needed assistance from those around her. Because of my love for special needs individuals, I began volunteering with Horses for Healing, which is an organization that allows special needs individuals to ride on horses. This not only allows the individuals to experience external healing as they are able to relax their muscles due to the motion of the horse’s back, but they are also able to experience emotional healing by feeling the special connection with an animal. It’s beautiful to see the bond that these individuals share with the horses, and I am blessed to be able to help out in any way I can. In addition to this, I also volunteer at my local church as Sunday school teacher and have been doing this for almost 10 years now. Working with kids has further taught me patience, communication skills, and the importance of keeping my word and being responsible when it comes to lesson planning. Because of my experience in the medical field, I decided at a young age that I wanted to do something medical, but it took me a while to decide exactly what. I decided that I would take an EMT course to see if that was something I wanted to pursue, and I ended up really enjoying it, specifically the connection I was able to make with the patients. From there I decided to go through a fire academy, which was challenging yet taught me a lot about dedication and perseverance. I am now volunteering at a fire department where I get to help out on many medical calls, which has further shown me that this is the career for me. My goal is to go to paramedic school next semester and am waiting to see if I get accepted. I plan to use the scholarship money to help pay for paramedic school. Thank you so much once again for reading my essay and for considering me for this scholarship!