When I was younger I wanted to do everything. I wanted to be a doctor and firefighter and even a mortician. The whole point was I wanted to make some time of change. Whether it be big or small I want to be able to make a change in others life. Ever since a was a young girl I could remember the community I’ve grown up in. A small community by the Puyallup fair fostered with life and love it was something beautiful. When one person needed help the whole community stepped in that’s something I strive for in my new community. For while I didn’t know what type of changed I wanted to make. Over the past years trying to decide my career path helped shaped what type of change I want to make, to personally change individual lives so they can live the lives they deserve that’s my goal, as many people as a can. That’s why going to college will be my first step towards that goal. College will let me into a vast territory to help others. It will give me the ability to study the career field I want as well. I’ve seen the others get treated when they are deemed different by society. Left out, made fun of, poked out, it’s unfair and heartbreaking. My dream is to work with kids with autism so they can live long and have a sense of normalcy in their lives. This is where occupational therapy comes in! Helping others who are in need living their normal day lives. I learned about this field one day babysitting, the child’s mom offered that I should look over the career and see how I like it. From the very first video I watched I was hooked everything about the field made me fall in love. It’s something about helping someone regain control of their life again that makes life truly special, it’s something that just doesn’t happen everyday. That’s why I must be apart of this career to do the same things others are to add a touch of me to it. Doing this career path means helping hundreds of children over my career. Making changes in thier lives, giving them a better tomorrow and hope. Something that I experienced as a child that helped me help pushing for a better tomorrow that’s what I want others to experience, because it truly changes lives. College will help me be the best version of myself and will also help me make a forever impact of others lives just the two things I want.

I have a giggle issue or maybe a giggle problem. But ever since a was a young girl I would be in the corner just giggling at every little thing. I don't know why either to be fair I just can't control it something in me tells me to giggle. It doesn’t help that I have the worst nervous smile that comes in at the worst times often resulting in a long lecture about whatever I did wrong even though I didn’t really mean to. My giggle has taken me many places and has connected me to many people good and bad. I met my best friend through my giggle, she walked up to me in class and introduced herself and I couldn’t help but giggle a bit because well the randomness of the situation she immediately smiled back and from there it was smooth sailing now I have a person for life. But sometimes it takes a toll for the worse when admitted to the psychiatric ward I was all alone in an empty room. I’m the type of person to look back at funny moments and just laugh, they threatened to lock me to the bed if i kept going on. So that was really awkward. Actually as I’m writing I’m giggling to myself right now. To me it’s just a human response something I can’t necessarily control, if anything it’s a way I express myself. It doesn’t help that I probably have the most crooked teeth known to man. Something I’ve been bullied about all my life but that’s never stopped me from smiling if anything it makes me smile more because why are you so mad I’m expressing my feelings in such a harmless way. The comments said about me and giggle or teeth never really bothered me because yes I know my giggle may annoy others or be a little weird but who cares and yes also I know my teeth aren’t the best but yet again who exactly cares about that because I don’t and that’s all that matters sometimes it really is just me and my giggle against the world and there is nothing wrong with that. I love to laugh I love to giggle I love to smile I love that I have the ability to do that all of that free of charge and nothing will ever change that feeling for me.

Legacy, I hope to leave one and I hope others follow not just because it makes me feel better about myself or it’s put attention on me solely because I want others to thrive and be happy and successful just like how I hope happens to myself. I hope especially to leave a legacy in getting education. I come from a family where school wasn’t first priority either work or just plain laziness was the answer school was never something shoved in my face or exactly supported. But ever since I could remember school means so much to me, it means building a social life and learning about whatever under the sun and so much more. Everything about school and getting my education excited me. I remember throwing fits and crying when my parents couldn’t take me to school offering any other solution then missing school. So education is so important to me because it’s not talked about enough in my family holding back a whole generation of people and I aim to change that not only because it’s actively it hurting the ones I love but because everyone deserves some sort of education even if it’s small it doesn’t hurt to get it. Because without education it truly holds you back from so many things and a person doesn’t deserve to miss out on that because their parents don’t think it’s worth it or they don’t think they are worthy of it. I believe education is for all to bask in its glory. It opens so much doors so much of everything. If it wasn’t for education I wouldn’t be in the situation I am in today, a high school senior enrolled in multiple ap classes, already committed to college ready to take on the world. If it wasn’t for education I wouldn’t have the friends I have today, I wouldn’t have done community service and help others the way I have. Education or school or whatever you really want to call it has so many perks to it. It’s almost crazy to deny it to anyone. So the legacy I hope to leave behind is someone who helps others who aspires others to get their education. Who doesn’t give up just because a bump in the road. Who doesn’t stop when it’s over. Who hopefully changes my family lives and others. Thank you for your time and consideration!

If there was a bigger word for important I would use it for this essay because mental health is such an important thing to me. Ever since I was a little girl my mental health has affected my life. I remember being young and just got knowing what was wrong with me. Even though I had a group of people who supported and loved me I felt like an outsider, like I didn’t belong. This affected me throughout my school life causing dips in my grades and relationships to crack. There has been a couple of times where my mental health had major issues in my life like recently my senior year when I finally took it seriously and got the help I needed. It was the winter time and as usual seasonal depression was kicking my butt but every year it just seems to get worse and worse. This year I was at my limit no more ignoring red flags and acting like everything was okay so after a battle in my mind, body and soul I decided to get check myself into a psychiatric ward. This was very vulnerable to me because I was carry myself with this sense of completeness like I know what I have going on. So this broke that sense of completeness I had but I wasn’t ashamed I knew this was for the best. After that experience I vowed to never let anyone feel as lost and incomplete like I did because just feeling like that is the worst, it’s like your stuck in a pit screaming for help but no one is coming to help. I want to further help my community by not letting mental health be a taboo subject, let us talk about it without feel in a sense of shame. I do this already by regularly talking to my friends about how they are feeling and how I can make them feel better. I make goodie bags and cards for when they feel down and also find a way to uplift them to daunting situations. I have spoken at a mental health conference many times before sharing my experiences. Which I hope to continue in the future because sharing my experiences with others is something I’m passionate about letting others know they aren’t alone and that they aren’t actually crazy and that if anything their experiences are relatable. Thank you for your time and consideration!

Going to college and getting degree will mean starting a legacy not just for me but for my family. Im a first generation student the only child out of 7 who is pursuing a college degree so going to college means a lot and getting a degree means even more. College to me means a new beginning a chance to open my wings and fly. But it also means finally a sense of stability all my life i've been living with a sense of anxiety and fear that maybe we won't have enough for rent this month or we don't have enough to have dinner. All these things affecting my well being. College for me means these worries finally get to disappear as I will be able to have a stable income on campus and live life to the fullest. This also means providing for my family like they did for me. Giving my siblings and mom a break from work to finally reword them for all they do. i want to make my dreams come true but also my moms being able to live a steady and easy life that's something I want to bring to life. My passion is help kids with autism to give them a better and deserving life, I already somewhat help with this passion by babysitting. I babysit a child with autism in my free time, it's a hard but rewarding job seeing his smile and giggles make everything worth it. Apart from help kids with autism I want to be become an occupational therapist to help change peoples lives I would love to work with kids with autism but helping anybody is the goal. I want anybody with any condition to be able to live a life just like everyone else no struggle, ways that I helped the dream come true is job shadowing. I job shadow a hand specialist often I learn many things about the field like staying organized, being ready to solve problems on the spot an much more all these things prepare me for the future which I am ready for. In terms of actually preparing Im committed to Central Washington University and will be majoring in clinical physiology and getting my bachelors degree from there I plan to get my masters and doctorate from Puget Sound University. This whole process has already prepared for more than I'll ever know as im just a high school student with big dreams. Thank you for your time

Mental health is something I've always struggled with. It was embarrassing. I was too afraid to speak up, and when I did, my parents simply brushed it off as attention seeking or just a part of growing up. Nobody I knew around me was going through what I was going through. The first time it truly took effect in my life was my freshman year of high school. I was being bullied by people I thought were my forever friends on top of that my parents were going through a breakup which I blamed myself for. I stopped going to school and if i did i was too high on drugs to remember anything and i skipping class so often. It got to the point where my grades were so bad that there was simply no going back. At the time, I was in and out of the hospital for ITP, a disease that affects your platelets. This affected me because I couldn't even do simple activities and couldn't hang out with friends anymore. All these events in my freshman year set me back badly. I truly thought there was no future ahead of me. I refused to get help, though, as I simply thought this would all pass, and if I had let it pass I'll be fine. This was wrong. In December of last year I took my first trip to the psych ward. My mental health was incredibly low, I tried taking my life multiple times, and my drug usage was through the roof. I spent a week there, and throughout my experience, I truly learned that my mental illness is not something I will let control my life, well, at least not anymore. Going to the psych ward and meeting people who refused to let this mental illness take over their lives inspired me to keep pushing and keep going. I was put on meds and into therapy. But then I had to face the real world, probably the scariest part. It's so easy to say you're gonna get better in there, but when in true time you're put to the test. I left with a heavy heart, truly never knowing what was going to happen to the other people like me in there, but I knew this was a new chapter in my life. I was luckily blessed with a great group of supporters, my friends, and my family. Going back to school has only pushed me harder to help others and be great in everything I do. With my new mindset, I've helped others immensely with their mental health, helped the community by giving hygiene items to people in need, and I have upcoming events like helping in a food kitchen, cleaning up a road, and donating my own clothes to a shelter. My grades are slowly steadying back up to A's, something I continuously work on. The importance of this all is that I will not be a product of my mental illness, with that I will continue to achieve greatness in school and my community one day at a time. The future i am hoping for is helping others in my community going to college would be giving me the opportunity to do so. I plan to be a occupational therapist working with kids with kids. Thank you so much for your time and consideration

Babysitting, there's something about helping kids grow up and navigate the world that does something to my heart and plus the money was great. It wasn't until the summer of 2023 that I babysat a special kid. His name was Amour and he had autism. I've babysat kids with autism before so it wasn't anything new to me. My own cousins and siblings had autism so it was something different to me. It was normal. He was non verbal so we communicated with the sounds and hand signals he made, I myself taught him new signs and new ways to communicate. I found myself offering to hangout with him for free, as every time I did I learned something new, and so did he. Last summer I was talking about my future plans with his mom saying I wanted to be a social worker to help others in hard times. It was generic really, and I was semi passionate about it. It wasn't until his mom offered a new route, occupational therapy, that I actually never heard of the name before or even considered the career. But after further research, what they do inspires me. All my life I've seen my cousin and my brother judged for something they couldn't change. Special ed students came into my class last year and talked about things they wanted to change in school. They presented that they wanted the judging and bullying to stop and for the struggling due to the less accommodations to end. It's unfair, evil and it hurts. If there was a way to help take all these problems away I would. That's why I'm going to Central Washington University to major in clinical physiology. From there I'll attend Puget Sound university to master in occupational therapy. ThenI plan to specialize and work with kids with autism. This summer I will continue to babysit Armour and further help him out. I will be job shadowing fellow occupational therapists. The way I was able to help Amour make changes forever inspires me to help more kids with autism. I never want to see kids struggle with the world because it refuses to accommodate them or for people to shamelessly judge because they are uneducated. If I am able to do those two things then my goals will be met. I want to be able to inspire change and make change in this world for kids with autism. I want them to know just because of their disability doesn't mean you can't reach for the stars and strive for greatness. When it comes to challenges I am the first to say Ive been through what it seem like all. My mental health Is something I talk so dearly but with is much passion because it affected me so much. Throughout my high school years my mental health has been a challenge for multiple things I experienced bullying and harassment for all 4 years but that didn't stop being an 3.2 GPA student in ap classes, that didn't stop me from being involved in my community and joining clubs to help better the community further, it didn't stop me from applying and being committed to college and it won't stop me from going. This is because I know there will be obstacles in my way of being successful and happy and I must not let that let in the way. I want the things I'm doing to inspire others to create and be the change as well I do this to help others so the world is better place we need more kindhearted people. Because I will be the first generation in my family to get a college degree I hope to create a legacy of strong educated people because education truly gets you so far. I want to pass down the tradition of being hard working down generations. Overall I know my future has big things planned for me becoming an occupational therapist and helping others around my community will hopefully inspire others to do the same as well as being the first in my finally to go to college. Creating abetter tomorrow for myself and others is all I want because we all deserve happy and long lives. I know I will succeed in these goals and even more as I am a hard working student. My drive for helping others keep me pushing everyday to help others and myself. Thank you so much for your time and consideration and I hope to hear back!

When my dad left and sold the house I didn't care I was more focused on the fact that I didn't wanna sell my barbies. When we moved into shared home with my mom friend I didn't care, the only thing one my mind was how was I gonna get to the school. When we hopped home to home trying to find stable housing I didn't care, what was for dinner that night was the real question on my mind. Maybe it was because I was so young or maybe it was because I was just blind to the situations in front me but finances took a toll on my life and it still does. When my dad left and sold the home my newly single mother and her 5 kids had no where to go plus my mom didn't have a great job making it hard for everyone. When we finally did find stable housing it was like heaven. Opening that door felling the cool breeze on my skin, whew nothing can truly replicate that feeling, the down sides where of course sleeping on the sofa because no way a 2 bedroom apartment was going to house 7 people In peace but that didn't matter to me what matters the most was that we didn't have to house hop anymore, I finally unpacked my barbies and I knew what was for dinner that night. My mom was never great with money often going out and spending most of it leaving us in difficult positions where things had to be sacrificed but I didn't mind for the most part. Because of this local community things like food drives and free school supplies and etc really came in clutch for us. Seeing the community help us really motivated me to want to help back but that wouldn't be till years later. But it's something about seeing the community come to together to help each other well it does something to you, it gives you a sense of hope. When it comes to my future I am a little nervous because I'm doing this all alone or at least for the most part I learned that its okay to lean back on the community for any type of help and its okay to admit when you need help. I have a couple of goals in life and one of them is to be debt free or almost for the most part. I want to be able to help others in need just like how I was helped but overall, I plan to be a first generational student who hopes to have little to no student debt and lives life financially stable and happy

It was the night before my bff's sleepover of course I was excited almost jumping in joy but that joy quickly faded into shock. My mom called me dead in the night to tell me her and my stepdad got into a gnarly car accident and they were on their way to the hospital. In that moment everything stopped and questions quickly filled my head. How bad was the accident? Is everybody okay? I didn't know and I wouldn't know till hours later. So it was quickly established in my head that the sleepover was a no go and I knew because I am the most responsible of my siblings that whatever comes next I would have to be in charge. When my parents came home it pained me to see the condition they were in. All beat up and hurt. Their limbs broken and they were aching in pain and there was nothing I could really do or that's what I thought. From that moment forward I decided to take the step forward to take care of my parents, I knew It was going to be a tiresome thing juggling my sophomore year in high school and my parents at the same time but I knew it was possible because it would be absolutely cruel not to do everything in power to make sure they were okay. So during the day and night I was constantly running up and down and stairs to make sure both my parents where okay because I was working with a broken arm and a broken leg. I viewed this situation not as a burden or something I had to do because it would make me look good but as a duty because my parents lives depended on me to make sure they were okay and I was going to be that person for them. This impacted me in more than a way, I learned that life is short and that to love everyone around you because you don't know when life could be taken from you. I learned that just because you do a good thing doesn't mean you will be praised for it like a god. Because to this day I have not gotten my thanks for taking care of my parents and for some that might faze from but for me I knew it was just my duty to take care of them just like how they would do for me

Hi my name is, Brooklyn but I go by Brooki and I'm a dirt poor high school student that wants to go college. I live by this saying I made up that's "I take losses everyday" because its true weather the lose be getting a equation that day I do this so I don't beat myself up other simple mistakes others do as well and it work pretty well. I would like to say I'm an avid reader but that's not true I read time to time every time I do though the book ends up being another masterpiece to my collection and that's why I love reading because even though I don't do it often I always find hidden gems that are just top tier reads. As stated above I come from a boy filled house that's hanging on by a thread I am the girl out of siblings and the first to go college in my whole entire family. This means im starting a legacy. Im pretty nervous about that because well it's not everyday you create a legacy for your family specially as an afro Latina student. Being dirt poor majority of your life has taught me a lot of things about my community and how good they are at giving back that's why I chose to often give back to my community because they deserve it a lot. Im in clubs at my school like Key Club that focus on community and how to give back with my help we were bale to do that by giving hygiene items to families in need, doing canned food drives from time to time to help keep the community fed. We make cards for sick kids in hospitals and give out appreciation cards to janitors and bus drivers. Giving back to the community means so much to me because when I had nothing and no where else to go they had open arms for me and my family which makes me want to the the same, even as I venture of to college I still plan to do the same not because it makes me good person or whatever because I want to help. Overall im just a basic high school student who isn't special or different in any way I like top read on special occasions and always find the perfect book and I love helping my community

Our society is cutthroat being good has many different definitions and somehow you need to fit all off these rules to be deemed as good. I tried to fit that mindset for a whole doing above and beyond filling everyones cups so that society saw me as good or the world saw me like that but at the end of the day I see myself as an average Joe who helps the community from time to time hoping to make some type of change no matter the size. As of right now I'm just a basic high school teenager franticly turning in scholarships because I totally forgot to me before. Im in multiple clubs and activities to help the community such as key club a club led by service and helping the community. I do things like give hygiene items to the homeless and canned food to the homeless. I give love and shoutouts the workers around school like making cards for janitors and bus drivers and I give love and appreciation to sick children in hospitals but it's such a toll of what they are going through. Growing up low income and having to experience that life made me aware of what similarly of what others go through. This what makes me wanna help the community more because I don't want others to go through same things I did. In the future I would love to work with kids with autism solely because I babysit kids with autism this is because I truly think they deserve just the same human experience we do. I know I will be the positive force working as an occupational therapist because they do so much already changing peoples live adding joy to many lives which is what I'm planning to do. Society tends to fawn and hypo focus on what others do good or bad but I'm not doing this because of the attention or the eyes and praise that will be on me. I'm doing it for others and the people I'm doing it so they live happy long lives and get the experience the things I didn't because just because I didn't get it doesn't mean they don't. Overall the world is so harsh no matter what you do, good or bad, but that shouldn't stop that watchful eye from doing things that are right snd true to yourself and others.

From a young age I knew something was wrong with me and not like small thing, a big one I knew this because no one worried like I ddi about the world for hours and hours tossing and turning in their sleep about getting older, having regular panic attacks or when you develop a wave of unrecognized sadness for days, weeks with not much an explanation of why. No one understood the problem I had so I held it up. It was at first easy to bottle up my feelings being young and free and happy was all that was asked out of me so that was easy, it wasn't until I got older where the problems faced. Being sa hormonal teenage who can't keep their figure out what is going on with their body but also their mind. it was confusing and weird and all too much for me. At this moment my mental health was an all time low only at the age of 13 and I thought the world had nothing left to offer is so heartbreaking looking back. This feeling continued to stay with me till 18. It was until a mental breakdown gone wrong did I realize I need help and change. I view the world as this dark evil place and I didn't have a role there. I was helpless and should give up. there was nothing going for me. But the second I decided to go get that help to finally be. diagnosed with depression and anxiety. My world changed. I believe a person has the power to changed their world and I know this because I was that person once who able to change their world. When my mental health got better a lot of things changed for me, I finally let my friends and family in changing the dynamic and making me feel more seemed and loved which then bettered me. As for career I plan to attend central Washington university to get my bachelors degree in clinical physiology with that I will get my masters at the Puget sound university in occupational therapy. I chose this Parth because I think anyone of any age and disability deserves a chance to live life the same way anyone else does whether its new learned skills or accommodations. I think like,e this because this was the same way I was treated when getting my mental health treatments everyone there had a goal and it was to live the best life I could with he conditions I had and I am walking and living proof that their goals was a success.

Babysitting, there's something about helping kids grow up and navigate the world that does something to my heart and plus the money was great. It wasn't until the summer of 2023 that I babysat a special kid. His name was Amour and he had autism. I've babysat kids with autism before so it wasn't anything new to me. My own cousins and siblings had autism so it was something different to me. It was normal. He was non verbal so we communicated with the sounds and hand signals he made, I myself taught him new signs and new ways to communicate. I found myself offering to hangout with him for free, as every time I did I learned something new, and so did he. Last summer I was talking about my future plans with his mom saying I wanted to be a social worker to help others in hard times. It was generic really, and I was semi passionate about it. It wasn't until his mom offered a new route, occupational therapy, that I actually never heard of the name before or even considered the career. But after further research, what they do inspires me. All my life I've seen my cousin and my brother judged for something they couldn't change. Special ed students came into my class last year and talked about things they wanted to change in school. They presented that they wanted the judging and bullying to stop and for the struggling due to the less accommodations to end. It's unfair, evil and it hurts. If there was a way to help take all these problems away I would. That's why I'm going to Central Washington University to major in clinical physiology. From there I'll attend Puget Sound university to master in occupational therapy. ThenI plan to specialize and work with kids with autism. This summer I will continue to babysit Armour and further help him out. I will be job shadowing fellow occupational therapists. The way I was able to help Amour make changes forever inspires me to help more kids with autism. I never want to see kids struggle with the world because it refuses to accommodate them or for people to shamelessly judge because they are uneducated. If I am able to do those two things then my goals will be met. I want to be able to inspire change and make change in this world for kids with autism. I want them to know just because of their disability doesn't mean you can't reach for the stars and strive for greatness. I refuse to let anything get in way

Mental health is something I've always struggled with. It was embarrassing. I was too afraid to speak up, and when I did, my parents simply brushed it off as attention seeking or just a part of growing up. Nobody I knew around me was going through what I was going through. The first time it truly took effect in my life was my freshman year of high school. I was being bullied by people I thought were my forever friends on top of that my parents were going through a breakup which I blamed myself for. I stopped going to school and if i did i was too high on drugs to remember anything and i skipping class so often. It got to the point where my grades were so bad that there was simply no going back. At the time, I was in and out of the hospital for ITP, a disease that affects your platelets. This affected me because I couldn't even do simple activities and couldn't hang out with friends anymore. All these events in my freshman year set me back badly. I truly thought there was no future ahead of me. I refused to get help, though, as I simply thought this would all pass, and if I had let it pass I'll be fine. This was wrong. In December of last year I took my first trip to the psych ward. My mental health was incredibly low, I tried taking my life multiple times, and my drug usage was through the roof. I spent a week there, and throughout my experience, I truly learned that my mental illness is not something I will let control my life, well, at least not anymore. Going to the psych ward and meeting people who refused to let this mental illness take over their lives inspired me to keep pushing and keep going. I was put on meds and into therapy. But then I had to face the real world, probably the scariest part. It's so easy to say you're gonna get better in there, but when in true time you're put to the test. I left with a heavy heart, truly never knowing what was going to happen to the other people like me in there, but I knew this was a new chapter in my life. I was luckily blessed with a great group of supporters, my friends, and my family. Going back to school has only pushed me harder to help others and be great in everything I do. With my new mindset, I've helped others immensely with their mental health, helped the community by giving hygiene items to people in need, and I have upcoming events like helping in a food kitchen, cleaning up a road, and donating my own clothes to a shelter. My grades are slowly steadying back up to A's, something I continuously work on. The importance of this all is that I will not be a product of my mental illness, with that I will continue to achieve greatness in school and my community one day at a time.

Mental health is something I've always struggled with. It was embarrassing. I was too afraid to speak up, and when I did, my parents simply brushed it off as attention seeking or just a part of growing up. Nobody I knew around me was going through what I was going through. The first time it truly took effect in my life was my freshman year of high school. I was being bullied by people I thought were my forever friends on top of that my parents were going through a breakup which I blamed myself for. I stopped going to school and if i did i was too high on drugs to remember anything and i skipping class so often. It got to the point where my grades were so bad that there was simply no going back. At the time, I was in and out of the hospital for ITP, a disease that affects your platelets. This affected me because I couldn't even do simple activities and couldn't hang out with friends anymore. All these events in my freshman year set me back badly. I truly thought there was no future ahead of me. I refused to get help, though, as I simply thought this would all pass, and if I had let it pass I'll be fine. This was wrong. In December of last year I took my first trip to the psych ward. My mental health was incredibly low, I tried taking my life multiple times, and my drug usage was through the roof. I spent a week there, and throughout my experience, I truly learned that my mental illness is not something I will let control my life, well, at least not anymore. Going to the psych ward and meeting people who refused to let this mental illness take over their lives inspired me to keep pushing and keep going. I was put on meds and into therapy. But then I had to face the real world, probably the scariest part. It's so easy to say you're gonna get better in there, but when in true time you're put to the test. I left with a heavy heart, truly never knowing what was going to happen to the other people like me in there, but I knew this was a new chapter in my life. I was luckily blessed with a great group of supporters, my friends, and my family. Going back to school has only pushed me harder to help others and be great in everything I do. With my new mindset, I've helped others immensely with their mental health, helped the community by giving hygiene items to people in need, and I have upcoming events like helping in a food kitchen, cleaning up a road, and donating my own clothes to a shelter. My grades are slowly steadying back up to A's, something I continuously work on. The importance of this all is that I will not be a product of my mental illness, with that I will continue to achieve greatness in school and my community one day at a time.

Ever since I was in school, I've had a need to help my community, and I've done so in various ways in middle school. I often helped with canned food drives. Recently though my past 4 years of high school I really I really amped up I am a part of Key Club a club that's all about community service and through that I've done hygiene drives for families in need for Christmas I've done canned food drives for families in need I've made cards for sick kids in hospitals and for a bus drivers and janitors and really anyone that can be shout out and loved and can be appreciated cuz I truly think that everybody deserves at least some type of love and attention and appreciation. ​ This aspires me really a lot to make change in the world not just in my community even though I love my community and they give me so much I and I love giving back to them so much I want to make change in the world whether it be I don't know making dreams come true or helping or helping people in need or Really anything I can do to help the community would would make me happy I want to make a difference especially giving giving a chance for students to go to college I right now I'm struggling to find the funds to go to college and so when I do end up you know growing in my life and end up do going to college cuz that is my end goal I would like to help others go to college cuz it is such a hard confusing mess of of a thing and many don't know how to really Traverse that including myself I mean I'm still learning so yeah that's that's how I would like to make a difference in our world because you know not everybody really has a chance to go to college because of funds and because of family because of all these things so if I can be some type of change and some type of difference and make somebody's dream come true like my dreams have come true I would love to do that. ​ my end goal right now is to go to college and to get my bachelor's and master's degree in occupational therapy so that one day I can become an occupational therapy and work for kids of autism and that really is because I really do think that kids of autism aren't really taking seriously and cared about enough just like the rest of the world so I just would like to show them that they matter in that just because you have this disability doesn't mean you're different from anybody else and I would like to make a change in that Community as well because I want everybody to be loved and appreciated and treated the same. ​ Overall, I love helping the community, and it really has inspired me to help everybody I can, whether it be through financial need or whether it be for the autism community. I just want to help everybody I absolutely can cuz that is something I've just always felt like I've had in my heart. Thank you for your time and consideration, and I hope to hear back!

Hi, name is Brooklyn Brown and I'm currently a senior at Bethel High School, I like to hang out with my friends, watch tv and sleep, just the basic things an average teenager would do but I plan to do bigger in college I want to make a change, I want to change lives for greater good. I plan to become an occupational therapist who works with kids with autism. Many people don't even know what OT is but OT is life changing to many its make positive impacts everyday no matter the speciality and I would like to be apart of impact. Kids with autism are usually misunderstood and not taken seriously due to having autism. My goal is to help educate these people and get them to have a deeper understanding so children with autism can have a judge free life for the most part of course not every person will be willing to sit and listen to me teach them how to be less judgmental and more understanding but it's worth a try it really is. I babysit a child with autism and getting to learn the type of person he is touches my heart that inspires me to create change in the field. Everybody deserves a chance to be understood and loved to the fullest Some adversity I had was my mental health, its a very passionate topic for me mental health is something I care about so deeply because its truly affected me in ways. Throughout my high school experience mental health has been apart of my journey and not in the greatest way, but for an example I'll start at my senior year. My senior a had the most hardship with my mental due to all the stress I had, at the time I was still confused on college, had extra 5 people living in the house including their pets and was doing stage crew for my theater club. I will say it's a lot to juggle at the time I didn't know I had depression. Every year more than usual I get super sad and depressed and is just a mess but I didn't think anything of it. But yeah thats what happened I got super depressed and couldn't function so as soon I could I checked myself into a physc ward to get mental health help. That was the most venerable part of life I've never thought I would do something like that In my life before but here I was doing it. That experience taught me many things like how to be strong and how it's okay to lean on others for help. I overcame my hardship of depression by asking for help and getting and since then it's been a smooth sailing ship. Thank you for your time and consideration.

Babysitting, there's something about helping kids grow up and navigate the world that does something to my heart and plus the money was great. It wasn't until the summer of 2023 that I babysat a special kid. His name was Amour and he had autism. I've babysat kids with autism before so it wasn't anything new to me. My own cousins and siblings had autism so it was something different to me. It was normal. He was non verbal so we communicated with the sounds and hand signals he made, I myself taught him new signs and new ways to communicate. I found myself offering to hangout with him for free, as every time I did I learned something new, and so did he. Last summer I was talking about my future plans with his mom saying I wanted to be a social worker to help others in hard times. It was generic really, and I was semi passionate about it. It wasn't until his mom offered a new route, occupational therapy, that I actually never heard of the name before or even considered the career. But after further research, what they do inspires me. All my life I've seen my cousin and my brother judged for something they couldn't change. Special ed students came into my class last year and talked about things they wanted to change in school. They presented that they wanted the judging and bullying to stop and for the struggling due to the less accommodations to end. It's unfair, evil and it hurts. If there was a way to help take all these problems away I would. That's why I'm going to Central Washington University to major in clinical physiology. From there I'll attend Puget Sound university to master in occupational therapy. ThenI plan to specialize and work with kids with autism. This summer I will continue to babysit Armour and further help him out. I will be job shadowing fellow occupational therapists. The way I was able to help Amour make changes forever inspires me to help more kids with autism. I never want to see kids struggle with the world because it refuses to accommodate them or for people to shamelessly judge because they are uneducated. If I am able to do those two things then my goals will be met. I want to be able to inspire change and make change in this world for kids with autism. I want them to know just because of their disability doesn't mean you can't reach for the stars and strive for greatness. I refuse to let anything get in way

Stop by name is Brooklyn Brown and i plan to tackle to my future student debt by applying scholarships like this one! I hope the power of words helps me reach my his of being debt free in my future. I will continue to get my get education at Central Washington University by getting my bachelors degree in clinical physiology and then getting my masters in occupational therapy. I plan to one day become an OT (occupational therapist) to help kids with autism! As of right now im getting $8615 form state need grant, $7395 from Pell grant. I will pull out federal direct loans subsized and unsibsized equaling $5,500 and I'm getting $500 from college bound bringing me out at 22,010 but my total tuition is 26,241. To be totally honest none of my family is helping me out so I'm a broke confused but hopeful 18 year old who’s goal is to make it to college and be the first one in my family to attend college and get a degree and im so close to goal any amount of money helps me. If it does come to the point where i must pull out a private loan i will not me to beat me up as most Americans have loans so i will not be the odd one out but it will be a pain to pay that back but future profession makes good money about $98,340 to $101,370 a year this will help me a lot with paying back student loans and debt but the overall goal is to have little to no debt whatsoever. Another plan i have is to do workstudy! Work study is when i work for the school and with the money i pay off my tuition. I plan to do this all 4 years of college and i should make about 5,000 a year i hope. Work study will also help me build good work experience and skills so i can apply them to real world jobs. Overall my dream is go to college and experience life on my own, starting a legacy and dream. Becoming an OT would be the ultimate goal because helping others is my passion. Im so very grateful for the opportunity and thank you for hearing me out, either way with or without student debt i know i will be able to reach my goals, again thank you!

I’m a high school student who attends Bethel High School in Spanaway Washington. My main goal in like is to make a change, it doesn’t matter the size or to who I just want to make a change. I like to volunteer whenever possible like joining clubs I was an officer for key club for 4 years and became an officer my freshman and held it till my senior year through this club I was able to make a difference and a change by setting up community service events like helping the less fortunate by creating hygiene bags and providing canned goods. Others way were teaching kids about bird feeders and building them. Any way to educate and help my community i will take because it means so much to me. Spreading awareness is another project im passionate about with the help of HOSA a school club I was able to help spread awareness about the dangers of littering! It was a fun project were we held clean up days and educational slideshows about this problem, we managed to reach thousands of people and was able to create change. I also help back stage for theater, it’s an uncommon experience for many but it’s very rewarding and fun. Through this experience I learned you don’t have to be the center of attention and praised for doing things you just do it because you want to make a change and be a good person the praise and attention may come later. I also love helping others make their dreams come true so any way possible im happy to help. After High school I would love to become an occupational therapist and help kids with autism. I already babysit most of the time to a with autism the job is very rewarding and fun. I am in need finical need as I’m a couple thousand dollars behind in tuition. Any amount of money would help make my dream come true. If I had the change to own a charity it would be for kids with sanfilippo syndrome. Because the condition is so rare and deadly money towards research is needed to find a cure or any type of way to slow down the side effects so these kids get to live a long life they deserve. The cost alone for treatment many families just can’t afford that’s why I want to give back and help these families some how. I would like to hold charity walks to raise money for treatment and sell merchandise with sanfillippo logo on possibly. I would hold workshops and events to teach and educate those who don’t know what the condition is. I’m a very kind caring student who gives so much to the community and others.

Mental health is something I've always struggled with. It was embarrassing. I was too afraid to speak up, and when I did, my parents simply brushed it off as attention seeking or just a part of growing up. Nobody I knew around me was going through what I was going through. The first time it truly took effect in my life was my freshman year of high school. I was being bullied by people I thought were my forever friends on top of that my parents were going through a breakup which I blamed myself for. I stopped going to school and if i did i was too high on drugs to remember anything and i skipping class so often. It got to the point where my grades were so bad that there was simply no going back. At the time, I was in and out of the hospital for ITP, a disease that affects your platelets. This affected me because I couldn't even do simple activities and couldn't hang out with friends anymore. All these events in my freshman year set me back badly. I truly thought there was no future ahead of me. I refused to get help, though, as I simply thought this would all pass, and if I had let it pass I'll be fine. This was wrong. In December of last year I took my first trip to the psych ward. My mental health was incredibly low, I tried taking my life multiple times, and my drug usage was through the roof. I spent a week there, and throughout my experience, I truly learned that my mental illness is not something I will let control my life, well, at least not anymore. Going to the psych ward and meeting people who refused to let this mental illness take over their lives inspired me to keep pushing and keep going. I was put on meds and into therapy. But then I had to face the real world, probably the scariest part. It's so easy to say you're gonna get better in there, but when in true time you're put to the test. I left with a heavy heart, truly never knowing what was going to happen to the other people like me in there, but I knew this was a new chapter in my life. I was luckily blessed with a great group of supporters, my friends, and my family. Going back to school has only pushed me harder to help others and be great in everything I do. With my new mindset, I've helped others immensely with their mental health, helped the community by giving hygiene items to people in need, and I have upcoming events like helping in a food kitchen, cleaning up a road, and donating my own clothes to a shelter. My grades are slowly steadying back up to A's, something I continuously work on. The importance of this all is that I will not be a product of my mental illness, with that I will continue to achieve greatness in school and my community one day at a time.

Mental health is something I've always struggled with. It was embarrassing. I was too afraid to speak up, and when I did, my parents simply brushed it off as attention seeking or just a part of growing up. Nobody I knew around me was going through what I was going through. The first time it truly took effect in my life was my freshman year of high school. I was being bullied by people I thought were my forever friends on top of that my parents were going through a breakup which I blamed myself for. I stopped going to school and if i did i was too high on drugs to remember anything and i skipping class so often. It got to the point where my grades were so bad that there was simply no going back. At the time, I was in and out of the hospital for ITP, a disease that affects your platelets. This affected me because I couldn't even do simple activities and couldn't hang out with friends anymore. All these events in my freshman year set me back badly. I truly thought there was no future ahead of me. I refused to get help, though, as I simply thought this would all pass, and if I had let it pass I'll be fine. This was wrong. In December of last year I took my first trip to the psych ward. My mental health was incredibly low, I tried taking my life multiple times, and my drug usage was through the roof. I spent a week there, and throughout my experience, I truly learned that my mental illness is not something I will let control my life, well, at least not anymore. Going to the psych ward and meeting people who refused to let this mental illness take over their lives inspired me to keep pushing and keep going. I was put on meds and into therapy. But then I had to face the real world, probably the scariest part. It's so easy to say you're gonna get better in there, but when in true time you're put to the test. I left with a heavy heart, truly never knowing what was going to happen to the other people like me in there, but I knew this was a new chapter in my life. I was luckily blessed with a great group of supporters, my friends, and my family. Going back to school has only pushed me harder to help others and be great in everything I do. With my new mindset, I've helped others immensely with their mental health, helped the community by giving hygiene items to people in need, and I have upcoming events like helping in a food kitchen, cleaning up a road, and donating my own clothes to a shelter. My grades are slowly steadying back up to A's, something I continuously work on. The importance of this all is that I will not be a product of my mental illness, with that I will continue to achieve greatness in school and my community one day at a time.