Overcoming adversity is an experience that shapes our character and outlook on life. Adversity can come in many forms whether it be personal challenges, setbacks, or unexpected obstacles. The way we respond to these adversities can define who we are and how we navigate our journey through life. As a student athlete I have faced many adversities and setbacks. One adversity is dealing with injuries throughout my middle and high school years. I’ve been involved in both basketball and track and field since the young age of five. Over the years I’ve had many ankle injuries. My first ankle injury was a right ankle sprain during my eighth-grade basketball season. I had to miss half of the season, and it took quite a bit of time to recover. This injury was devastating to me because it occurred during my last basketball season in middle school. My second ankle sprain occurred during my sophomore season in high school. Again, I had to sit out for several games and go through ankle recovery. Then came my third ankle injury. While playing in a tournament, I suffered a right ankle fracture during the beginning of my junior season. Unfortunately, I missed out on playing the rest of the basketball season and I was unable to compete for track this season. I went through many rounds of therapy to recover and eventually play again. I worked closely with my physical therapist and my trainers at school to get stronger over time. Next up came my senior season. Once again unfortunately I began my senior season with an ankle sprain during my first preseason game. While wearing ankle braces to protect my ankles, this was yet another unbelievable setback. After going through physical therapy for over a month, the positive side is I was able to play again sooner after this injury. I was even able to help my team to set a record for the school, our team had the most wins in a basketball season at University High. We also became District Champions. After the basketball season came track and field. Previously, I’ve participated in running the 400m, 200m, and the 4x100 relay. However, I decided to only focus on participating in field events the long jump and triple jump during my senior season so I wouldn’t put so much strain on my ankles. During the season I was able to obtain some personal records, jumping 6.7m in the long jump and 13.8 m in the triple jump. However, about three weeks before my district meet, I suffered a hip flexor injury that kept me from practicing for the meet. The injury ended up being worse than expected and leading up to districts I could hardly sprint and jump before the meet. Despite the setback, I never put my head down and did everything I could to get my hip back to strength. I made it through districts which led me to regionals. After placing in the region, I eventually made it to compete for the state championship in the triple jump. After all of this I ended up placing twelfth in the state. After my athletic seasons, I was presented with the Coach’s Award for basketball and MVP for track and field. I learned to neve give up on my dreams through these experiences. I am currently a freshman at Keiser University in West Palm Beach, Fl. I committed to competing in track and field at Keiser while studying Exercise and Sports Science. I look forward to becoming an athletic trainer or physical therapist and helping others recover from injuries as well.

While studying Exercise and Sports Science at Keiser University, I am continuing my journey of making a positive impact on the world. After suffering from several ankle injuries while playing basketball and a hip flexor injury while participating in track my senior year in high school, I have decided to become an athletic trainer or physical therapist. This is an ultimate goal of mine because I want to be able to help other athletes like myself recover from injuries and be able to live out their dreams in whatever sports they choose to compete in. Not only will I be able to help athletes recover, but they will also become self-confident in participating in the sports they enjoy. At the young age of thirteen I learned the importance of giving back to my community. I've participated in many community service projects over the years, my first one was serving at a summer camp as a youth camp counselor for two consecutive summers. I helped to organize and set up activities at the camp. The kids at the camp respected me and even referred to me as “Mr. Braylen.” During my high school years, I’ve served the community at the Salvation Army, Pineloch Elementary, Second Harvest Food Bank, and St. Luke’s Church. I’ve also been a member of EMBODI since 2019 and completed several service projects, such as the Thanksgiving Project with the Kenard Lang Foundation and creating Christmas cards for several nursing homes. Through these experiences I was able to “be a light” to many. While volunteering at the Salvation Army, I had the opportunity to serve at a Christmas dinner for senior citizens. I delivered gifts to them as well. They were very happy to be served by volunteers like me because many of them don’t have families visit them for the holiday season. One lady even danced as I carried her gifts to her apartment. My favorite service experience was at St. Luke’s, where I volunteered as a youth camp counselor/coach. This experience taught me how to serve as a leader and I was looked up to as a positive role model for the younger students at the camp. From day one of the camp, I was able to build relationships with the students attending and they looked forward to working with me as their counselor/coach/mentor. They were excited to return to camp every day and I looked forward to sharing my passion for basketball with them. I interacted with students and taught them new basketball moves at stations, which included ball handling, passing, and shooting drills. While at Keiser, we've participated in several service projects, such as fighting hunger in the community and helping setup at an event that helped to fight against cancer. Overall, serving the community has also helped me be a respectful individual, develop social skills, and make valuable connections with others. Through my leadership and mentorship, I will continue to make an impact. Thank you for considering me for this scholarship opportunity that will help me further my education. I look forward to continuing to make a difference in our communities and our world.

During my high school years, I encountered several setbacks by having multiple ankle injuries while playing basketball and a hip flexor injury while competing in track and field. Despite these setbacks I still overcame adversity after going through many rounds of physical therapy over time. I continued to work hard, never gave up, and recovered eventually. Currently, I am a freshman at Keiser University in West Palm Beach, Florida. I’ve committed to continuing my journey in track and field at Keiser where I recently finished my first college track and field outdoor season. I’ve done well competing in the triple jump and long jump events. I hope to expand my skills by adding on high jumping next season. I also look forward to being a mentor for young athletes like me who desire to live out their dreams. While studying Exercise and Sports Science at Keiser, I hope to one day become a physical therapist or athletic trainer so I can help others recover from injuries as well. Serving the community has helped me be a respectful individual, develop social skills, and make valuable connections with others. At the young age of thirteen, I began my journey of impacting the lives of others while serving over two hundred fifty hours at a camp as a youth teen leader for two consecutive summers. I helped to organize and set up activities at the camp and monitored the campers on field trips. The campers respected me and even referred to me as “Mr. Braylen.” It was then I developed leadership and mentoring skills. During my high school years, I’ve served the community at the Salvation Army, Pineloch Elementary, Second Harvest Food Bank, and St. Luke’s Church. I’ve also been a member of EMBODI since 2019 and completed several service projects, such as the Thanksgiving Project with the Kenard Lang Foundation and creating Christmas cards for several nursing homes. Through these experiences I was able to make a difference in the lives of others. While volunteering at the Salvation Army, I had the opportunity to serve at a Christmas dinner for senior citizens. I delivered gifts to them as well. They were very happy to be served by volunteers like me because many of them don’t have families visit them for the holiday season. One lady even danced as I carried her gifts to her apartment. My favorite service experience was at St. Luke’s church, where I volunteered as a youth camp counselor/coach. This experience allowed me to continue to serve as a leader and I was looked up to as a positive role model for the younger students at the camp. From day one of the camp, I was able to build relationships with the students attending and they looked forward to working with me as their counselor/coach/mentor. They were excited to return to camp every day and I looked forward to sharing my passion for basketball with them. I interacted with students and taught them new basketball moves at stations, which included ball handling, passing, and shooting drills. Overall, this service experience was beneficial to me because it allowed me to improve my leadership skills and instructive abilities through the game I love. I look forward to having more experiences like this in the upcoming future where I can make a positive change and give back to the world. At Keiser I’ve also participated in several community service projects that have impacted social issues, such as helping setup for an event that aimed at fighting against cancer and helping to fight hunger in the community as well.

During my high school years, I encountered several setbacks by having multiple ankle injuries while playing basketball and a hip flexor injury while competing in track and field. Despite these setbacks I still overcame adversity after going through many rounds of physical therapy over time. I continued to work hard, never gave up, and recovered eventually. Currently, I am a freshman at Keiser University in West Palm Beach, Florida. I’ve committed to continuing my journey in track and field at Keiser where I recently finished my first college track and field outdoor season. I’ve done well competing in the triple jump and long jump events. I hope to expand my skills by adding on high jumping next season. I also look forward to being a mentor for young athletes like me who desire to live out their dreams. While studying Exercise and Sports Science at Keiser, I hope to one day become a physical therapist or athletic trainer so I can help others recover from injuries as well. Serving the community has helped me be a respectful individual, develop social skills, and make valuable connections with others. At the young age of thirteen, I began my journey of impacting the lives of others while serving over two hundred fifty hours at a camp as a youth teen leader for two consecutive summers. I helped to organize and set up activities at the camp and monitored the campers on field trips. The campers respected me and even referred to me as “Mr. Braylen.” It was then I developed leadership and mentoring skills. During my high school years, I’ve served the community at the Salvation Army, Pineloch Elementary, Second Harvest Food Bank, and St. Luke’s Church. I’ve also been a member of EMBODI since 2019 and completed several service projects, such as the Thanksgiving Project with the Kenard Lang Foundation and creating Christmas cards for several nursing homes. Through these experiences I was able to make a difference in the lives of others. While volunteering at the Salvation Army, I had the opportunity to serve at a Christmas dinner for senior citizens. I delivered gifts to them as well. They were very happy to be served by volunteers like me because many of them don’t have families visit them for the holiday season. One lady even danced as I carried her gifts to her apartment. My favorite service experience was at St. Luke’s church, where I volunteered as a youth camp counselor/coach. This experience allowed me to continue to serve as a leader and I was looked up to as a positive role model for the younger students at the camp. From day one of the camp, I was able to build relationships with the students attending and they looked forward to working with me as their counselor/coach/mentor. They were excited to return to camp every day and I looked forward to sharing my passion for basketball with them. I interacted with students and taught them new basketball moves at stations, which included ball handling, passing, and shooting drills. Overall, this service experience was beneficial to me because it allowed me to improve my leadership skills and instructive abilities through the game I love. I look forward to having more experiences like this in the upcoming future where I can make a positive change and give back to the world. At Keiser I’ve also participated in several community service projects that have impacted social issues, such as helping setup for an event that aimed at fighting against cancer and helping to fight hunger in the community as well.

During my high school years, I encountered several setbacks by having multiple ankle injuries while playing basketball and a hip flexor injury while competing in track and field. Despite these setbacks I still overcame adversity after going through many rounds of physical therapy over time. I continued to work hard, never gave up, and recovered eventually. Currently, I am a freshman at Keiser University in West Palm Beach, Florida. I’ve committed to continuing my journey in track and field at Keiser where I recently finished my first college track and field outdoor season. I’ve done well competing in the triple jump and long jump events. I hope to expand my skills by adding on high jumping next season. I also look forward to being a mentor for young athletes like me who desire to live out their dreams. While studying Exercise and Sports Science at Keiser, I hope to one day become a physical therapist or athletic trainer so I can help others recover from injuries as well. Serving the community has helped me be a respectful individual, develop social skills, and make valuable connections with others. At the young age of thirteen, I began my journey of impacting the lives of others while serving over two hundred fifty hours at a camp as a youth teen leader for two consecutive summers. I helped to organize and set up activities at the camp and monitored the campers on field trips. The campers respected me and even referred to me as “Mr. Braylen.” It was then I developed leadership and mentoring skills. During my high school years, I’ve served the community at the Salvation Army, Pineloch Elementary, Second Harvest Food Bank, and St. Luke’s Church. I’ve also been a member of EMBODI since 2019 and completed several service projects, such as the Thanksgiving Project with the Kenard Lang Foundation and creating Christmas cards for several nursing homes. Through these experiences I was able to make a difference in the lives of others. While volunteering at the Salvation Army, I had the opportunity to serve at a Christmas dinner for senior citizens. I delivered gifts to them as well. They were very happy to be served by volunteers like me because many of them don’t have families visit them for the holiday season. One lady even danced as I carried her gifts to her apartment. My favorite service experience was at St. Luke’s church, where I volunteered as a youth camp counselor/coach. This experience allowed me to continue to serve as a leader and I was looked up to as a positive role model for the younger students at the camp. From day one of the camp, I was able to build relationships with the students attending and they looked forward to working with me as their counselor/coach/mentor. They were excited to return to camp every day and I looked forward to sharing my passion for basketball with them. I interacted with students and taught them new basketball moves at stations, which included ball handling, passing, and shooting drills. Overall, this service experience was beneficial to me because it allowed me to improve my leadership skills and instructive abilities through the game I love. I look forward to having more experiences like this in the upcoming future where I can make a positive change and give back to the world. At Keiser I’ve also participated in several community service projects that have impacted social issues, such as helping setup for an event that aimed at fighting against cancer and helping to fight hunger in the community as well.

Adversity can come in many forms whether it be personal challenges, setbacks, or unexpected obstacles. The way we respond to these adversities can define who we are and how we navigate our journey through life. As a student athlete I have faced many adversities and setbacks. One adversity is dealing with injuries throughout my middle and high school years. I’ve been involved in both basketball and track and field since the young age of five. Over the years I’ve had many ankle injuries. My first ankle injury was a right ankle sprain during my eighth-grade basketball season. I had to miss half of the season, and it took quite a bit of time to recover. This injury was devastating to me because it occurred during my last basketball season in middle school. My second ankle sprain occurred during my sophomore season in high school. Again, I had to sit out for several games and go through ankle recovery. Then came my third ankle injury. While playing in a tournament, I suffered a right ankle fracture during the beginning of my junior season. Unfortunately, I missed out on playing the rest of the basketball season and I was unable to compete for track this season. I went through many rounds of therapy to recover and eventually play again. I worked closely with my physical therapist and my trainers at school to get stronger over time. Next up came my senior season. Once again unfortunately I began my senior season with an ankle sprain during my first preseason game. While wearing ankle braces to protect my ankles, this was yet another unbelievable setback. After going through physical therapy for over a month, the positive side is I was able to play again sooner after this injury. I was even able to help my team to set a record for the school, our team had the most wins in a basketball season at University High. We also became District Champions. After the basketball season came track and field. Previously, I’ve participated in running the 400m, 200m, and the 4x100 relay. However, I decided to only focus on participating in field events the long jump and triple jump during my senior season so I wouldn’t put so much strain on my ankles. During the season I was able to obtain some personal records, jumping 6.7m in the long jump and 13.7m in the triple jump. However, about three weeks before my district meet, I suffered a hip flexor injury that kept me from practicing for the meet. The injury ended up being worse than expected and leading up to districts I could hardly sprint and jump before the meet. Despite the setback, I never put my head down and did everything I could to get my hip back to strength. I made it through districts which led me to regionals. After placing in the region, I eventually made it to compete for the state championship in the triple jump. After all of this I ended up placing twelfth in the state. Although I didn't do as well as expected, from these experiences I learned self discipline and to never give up on my dreams. After my athletic seasons, I was presented with the Coach’s Award for basketball and MVP for track and field. I am currently a freshman at Keiser University in West Palm Beach, Fl. I have committed to competing in track and field at Keiser while studying Exercise and Sports Science. I look forward to becoming an athletic trainer or physical therapist and helping others recover from injuries as well.