I still remember how it felt to be floating upside down in the water. The world moved at a much slower pace. It was peaceful looking around as minnows swam by my head, and small waves splashed on my feet which were sticking up above the surface. Now every time I open my eyes underwater, I am transported back to that day. A memory forever ingrained into my mind. It was a family reunion and we were all swimming in a river. My dad had taken me on a tube ride downstream, and our tube flipped over in one of the deepest parts of the water. Luckily I had a life jacket on, but my dad, who never learned how to swim properly growing up in Nigeria, did not. I had no idea that after that moment my life would change forever. Losing your father at four years old is not easy. I always felt like the odd one out. When I was six my dance studio had the dads come in and do a dance with their daughters, but I had to have my older brother come. In kindergarten there was a “dad and donuts” day, but my aunt came to it instead. At my school’s daddy-daughter dances, I went with my uncle and cousins a few times until I felt too much like I was intruding on their bonding time. I tend to feel like I am an imposter. I go about my day acting as if I am just like everyone else. Pretending that thirteen years is enough time to get over the death of my father, and that it does not affect me anymore. Acting like growing up with a single parent has not made me different. The truth is that I am different. I do not relate to those jokes about dads helping with math homework at the kitchen table, or understand what a “father’s love” is like. I grew up making dinner for me and my four siblings on school nights because my mom was working a twenty four hour shift at the hospital. It can get lonely at times, because it seems like no one understands. I go to a small Christian school in Delaware, so I just assumed that no one else could relate to me. That was until tenth grade when I became friends with a girl in the grade below me. She also had a less than perfect home life and ended up losing her father at the end of the year. I used to think that she was a mean person, and that I should never associate myself with her. She is someone who puts up a strong front, but one day when her mom could not pick her up from school she burst out into tears while telling me. I hugged her and told her I completely understood, and the thing was that I did understand. To the average person this may seem like an odd thing to break down over. Being a part of the dead parents club is not a membership I would wish upon anyone, but it has taught me how to be a more compassionate person. I now know of multiple people in my high school alone that have lost one of their parents and we share a type of understanding that can only come from being in our types of situations. Losing my dad has made me realize that you truly never understand what others are going through, and to show love and patience to all. No matter what.

Let’s take a look into my past. I’m four years old with my mom, dad, and four brothers on a family vacation. Expect it’s not just any vacation, it’s a family reunion with both sides of the family. We’re at a lake in Tennessee enjoying each other's company. I ask my dad to go on a tubing ride down the river, just like my older brothers already had. We get on the tube and wave goodbye to my mom. Little did my mom know that would be the last time she said goodbye to my father. All of a sudden the tube flips over in the twelve foot deep part of the river. My dad, born and raised in Nigeria, never learned how to swim properly. His last act before going under the water was pushing me as close as he could to the shore so that I could live. From that day forward, my family’s life changed forever. The saying “it takes a village to raise a child” is true, and I could not be more grateful for my village. Both of my parents came from large families, so me and my siblings have always been surrounded by love. Getting a good education is very important in my family. My mom’s side especially has always been willing and ready to help me and my brothers have every opportunity we need to live out God’s purpose for our lives. One parent supporting five kids alone is not easy. We live off of one income and my mom can only have so much knowledge when it comes to all of the different career paths and interests we all have. This is where having a big family can be a huge blessing. I have had multiple resources and opportunities given to me to help me figure out what I want to do with my life. A month prior to writing this essay, one of my uncles and his wife offered to give me money to go towards CLEP testing in order to get some college credits knocked out at a lower price. Another aunt of mine has offered me opportunities to go to STEM camps to get networking and experience. All of my family members are always willing to help me talk things through and give me advice regarding schooling. I am so immensely thankful for my family who has always encouraged and provided for me and my siblings in so many different ways to make sure we have the same educational opportunities that others have. Without them I don’t know where I would be. Losing a parent requires a lot of support from others, and I am so blessed to say that I have that and so much more.

A piece of technology that inspires me is the microwave. That may seem like a simple answer, but the microwave is truly incredible. The microwave can do so many things. It can act as a substitute kettle to heat up your tea water. It can act as an oven to make a dessert. It can even act as a fire to heat up your socks on a cold, winter's day. All of this to say, the microwave has genuinely changed the world. It has helped speed up the cooking process immensely. What once took hours to cook on the stove now takes only seconds to heat up in the microwave. The microwave can also be helpful when you are struggling with money. Some people do not always have the funds to buy all of the ingredients for a “normal” meal. With the microwave, you can buy a frozen meal at a store, heat it up, and have a hot meal ready in minutes. Even hotel rooms all have microwaves, because they are so versatile. The advances in technology that we as a society have made are fascinating. From airplanes to artificial intelligence, our world is changing rapidly. It can be scary at times when we do not know what is going to happen. When this uncertainty comes up, I try to also think of how uncertain people must have been when the microwave was first invented. While technology has a potential to be used for unfavorable things, it also has the potential to make a good impact as well and make the world a better place.

For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to pursue a career in healthcare. I have always been an empathetic person and had a desire to help others since I was a little girl. As an African American who grew up in Texas for half of my life, I knew that stood out. I never felt less than or less capable though. This is because my parents taught me that I could be more. My dad moved to America as an immigrant from Nigeria to pursue a college degree. He worked from the ground up to make something of himself. He was one of the first people in his family to go and seek a better life. My mom, as a mixed woman who came from a large family in Illinois, was told that she couldn’t be more. She broke those barriers and was the first one of her siblings to branch out and seek higher education, even though none of the others had done that yet. She then used her career to provide for five young children on her own after my father died. When I join the medical field, I desire to make a true impact on those around me. I’m going to follow my parent’s example and break barriers. My goal is to use the ideals and skills that I have learned growing up to touch people’s hearts. I desire to bring joy and hope into the darkest times. I know that even going to get a simple check up can give people anxiety, and I want to bring them peace. Careers in healthcare are known to be some of the most difficult careers whether you’re in school or on the job. I’m going to show myself that I can do more than I ever thought I could. I’m going to push myself and strive to be better every step of the way. I want to aim high so that I can show others they can as well. Racial diversity and representation is important in healthcare, as with all other fields, to make others feel seen. I know that I unconsciously scan every place I go to see if there are other black people. When there are others like me, I feel like I’m not alone. When I’m working in healthcare I want someone to walk in, see me, and feel more comfortable and inspired. A lot of African Americans feel like they can’t pursue what they want to due to limitations. With my career I want to show that you can achieve anything you put your mind to no matter who you are or where you come from.

When I was around the age of six, I was determined to improve my drawing skills. Not just any skill, but specifically the skill of drawing a star. Not the star with the lines crisscrossing in the middle, but a true free-handed star. All the cool kids knew how to draw a free-hand star, and I was in desperate need of something to boost my standing in my class hierarchy. I was an avid watcher of Disney Channel when I was younger, and I fully believed in the mantra that you can do anything you set your mind to. In this case, I had set my mind on staying relevant in the constantly changing elementary school culture. I got home from a tiring day of first grade and went straight to work. I didn’t even make a stop in the kitchen for an after school snack. I must have sat in my mom’s office (the appropriate place for such a serious occasion, obviously) for at least thirty minutes. Thirty minutes is a lot of time for a six-year-old. Half an hour felt like an eternity. I drew star after star until my hand cramped. Nevertheless, I just could not master it. I leaned my head back in frustration, and as I swung it forward I realized overshot. With all the passion of a tortured, six-year-old artist, my face slammed into the desk. While I was gearing up to cry I tasted something metallic in my mouth. I had knocked one of my front teeth completely loose. I stopped trying to draw a free-hand star after that day. At least I had gotten a visit from the tooth fairy out of it. After this failed endeavor, I was feeling pretty down. Sitting on my couch with an ice pack on my face was not how I wanted the day to end. I went to bed that night feeling pretty discouraged. As I was brainstorming new ideas, I realized something. I had now acquired an injury! Having an injury in first grade was as close to being a celebrity as one could get. I was on my way to conquering the world of elementary school. I would finally get to be the one who decided what we played at recess. Getting up the next day, I was feeling on top of the world. Well, not my mouth. My mouth felt pretty bad.

I have grown up in a single parent household since I was four years old. My dad died in a tubing accident on a family vacation leaving me, my mom, and my four brothers alone. After my father died, my mom has always told us that we will not become “statistics.” The general data for kids growing up in single parent families often comes up lacking when compared to the data for children growing up in two-parent households. My mom was determined to make sure that we would not just succumb to being part of the statistics. My dad moved to the US from Nigeria to attend college. He was the first of his family to make that change and was incredibly smart. In my own education journey, I have strived to live up to his legacy. It has not been easy only having one parent. I have had to grow up a lot faster than the majority of my peers. This only made me more determined to work that much harder than everyone else. I didn’t want to be seen as less than just because I grew up without a dad. During late elementary school and all throughout middle school, my mom worked two jobs as a Registered Nurse Midwife. This meant many long days and night shifts, which also meant that we were home alone a lot. A few nights every week it was up to us to figure out what to do for dinner, and somehow that task always ended up falling on me. In the mornings it was also up to me to make my little brother’s lunch and get him up for school. Managing all this at a young age while at the same time managing school work instilled a great work ethic in me. I have always managed to maintain straight A’s on my report cards and be seen as a leader in my school. While I wish that I didn’t have to mature so fast, some good things came out of it. I plan to go to college to pursue a nursing degree. While I saw how stressful it was for my mother, she has always been able to provide for her family in the best and worst of times. The way that I grew up has given me a heart to help others. With this career path I can make a difference in a true, meaningful way. Being a Registered Nurse Midwife, my mom makes more than the average “in need” American family. What most places don’t take into account is that she’s also the only source of income for now six children. I have older brothers who are in college and I have seen the financial struggles that they are going through. I don’t want that to be my story. The only way I can afford college is to take out student loans. This scholarship would help alleviate some of that burden. I want to go into my freshman year with as much financial freedom as possible so I can achieve my nursing degree stress-free. This scholarship would help me break the stereotypes placed on those of us raised in single-parent homes.

Choosing what major to pursue in college is one of the most difficult decisions a person has to make. There are so many options and that can be overwhelming. Especially when you’re someone like me who has so many different dreams and visions of what my life could be like. I had this big fear that I would choose the wrong major and be stuck for the rest of my life. In all of this confusion and uncertainty, the person who has always been there for me is my mom. My mom is a Registered Nurse-Midwife Practitioner. I originally didn’t want to do the same thing that my mom does, because it would seem like I couldn’t think for myself. I wanted to be different and “make my own path.” That was until I really considered what she did. As a nurse, specifically a labor and delivery nurse, she gets to care for people who are going through one of the biggest moments of their lives. She’s gotten countless thank you notes and flowers from patients over the years. She has made a true lasting impact in people’s lives. The thing that all of my career aspirations had in common were that I would get to help others in some way or another. I’ve always felt a call to the medical field, and originally I just thought that was because that was the field that my mom was in. That is definitely part of it, but I've come to realize that it’s so much more than that. Nurses are one of the most important parts of the medical field. Without them, we would all be lost. Nurses do much more than some people might think. It’s not always easy, nursing is not for the faint of heart. It takes a certain type of person to be a good nurse and I hope that one day I will be able to be that person. All of this to say, I have chosen to pursue nursing due to a mix of things. Nursing is a rewarding career, and my mom is a great example of that. Even though it’s hard she loves what she does. I have always had a heart for people and with nursing I can use that in every aspect of my life. I don’t want to just care for people, I want them to feel loved. I know I will encounter people who are going through hard and scary times. I want to bring them comfort and make them feel confident that they are in good hands.

My father drowned during a family vacation when I was four years old. What was supposed to be a fun trip tubing down a river turned into a tragedy. Losing my dad at such a young age left me at a disadvantage. I was old enough to have memories of him, but too young to truly know him. Now, at seventeen years old, when I think about him he feels like a stranger. Of course other members of my family tell me what he was like, but it’s not the same. Memories can’t replace the real thing. Going through life without a father means that I don’t get to experience the same things that other people do. I wasn’t comfortable with going to things labeled as “daddy-daughter” even though they said I could bring my brother or uncle instead. I’m not going to have my dad walk me down the aisle at my wedding. I don’t have someone to tell me corny dad jokes. All this being said, my life is not a sob story. Growing up in a single parent home with five siblings has been tough, but something that my mom has always said is that we will not become statistics. I joined track as a sprinter in the seventh grade. I had tried pretty much every sport out there by that point, but I didn’t enjoy any of them. I had been a dancer for most of my life, but I had recently quit and nothing else was measuring up. Starting track made me realize that sports didn’t have to be miserable. I finally found something that made me feel the way that dancing felt. You compete with a team, but you’re also competing against yourself. The skills you learn in track and field can be applied to your everyday life. You set goals for yourself and work hard to achieve those goals. You can get advice and help but the person ultimately responsible for change is yourself. Then there’s things like relays where multiple people are doing their best to make progress towards the same purpose. Track and field taught me how to have ambition and drive. I’ve been able to improve with each season and see that my hard work has actually been paying off. In my junior year of high school I was named the captain of the girls sprinting team. I want to show people that tragedies, even the loss of a parent, do not have to define their lives. While losing my dad is a big part of my story and who I am, that fact doesn't limit what I’m able to do and what I’m able to become. I plan to go to college to become a nurse and help people get through hard times and come out stronger in the end. We are all so much more than what has happened to us. Every single day we have a chance to better ourselves and work towards the goal of making a positive, lasting impact in the world. Hardships happen all throughout life. No matter what anyone says, we do not have to succumb to just being another statistic.

Ever since I was little I have dreamed about going to college. I have always excelled in and enjoyed school. I have run track as a sprinter for five years and was named the girls sprinting captain my junior year of high school. I have a hunger for learning and I have a strong desire to pursue higher education. I want to go to college to become a nurse. Being the fourth child of five kids and growing up in a single parent household for most of my life, I have found it hard to believe this goal would actually be possible. My father died when I was only four years old leaving my mom alone to provide for and raise five children. I don’t claim myself to be poor. I have food, a roof over my head, and a bed to sleep in every night. That being said, being a big family with only one income, we have always had a struggle with money. We were always the kids who went to summer camp on scholarships from anonymous donors. I have gone to private school most of my life, but that is also due to scholarships and my mother sacrificing for her children. Even paying for school field trips and events can be hard. My junior year of high school I wasn’t sure I was going to go to prom, but thanks to the kindness of other family members I was able to have that experience. I have always had to do more than others to get the same opportunities. I don’t want this to be a sob story where I am writing about why you should feel bad for me. My intended purpose is to explain the situation I am in. I want to show why I am so determined to achieve my goals. I have witnessed first-hand the burden that comes with student debt and applying for loans. My older brothers that are in college are constantly under stress trying to figure out how to go back each year. I don’t want that to be my story. I am not ruling out the option of debt, but I am going to try my absolute best to enter my freshman year of college with as much financial freedom as possible. I have always been a go-getter and I will not give up until all is said and done. This scholarship would be beneficial in allowing me to continue reaching for my goals. Every little bit counts and every little bit matters. I have not won a scholarship yet, and winning this one would show me that I am making progress and that what I am doing matters. Winning this scholarship would give me a boost of hope and open my eyes to the reality that money doesn’t have to hold me back.

I lost my dad when I was four years old. As one can assume, this changed the whole trajectory of my life. We were at a family reunion in Tennessee with both my mom’s side and my dad's side. This was a very rare occurrence because my dad was from Nigeria and my mom was from Illinois. One day we all went swimming in a big creek to have some fun together as a family. There was a little tubing course at the creek that people loved to go on. My brothers went on it. My uncles went on it. My cousins went on it. So naturally, I wanted to go on it as well. I begged my dad to take me and he agreed. We got on the tube and as we were floating away we waved goodbye to my mom. That was the last time my dad would ever say goodbye to her. We had gone a little ways down the course, and all of a sudden something caused our tube to flip over. I can still remember being upside down in the water and looking around at all the life below the surface not knowing what was going on. We were at the spot in the creek where the depth of the water was twelve feet, and my dad, coming from a village in Nigeria, didn’t know how to swim properly. Thankfully I had a life jacket on, so my dad used the last of his strength to push me towards the shoreline where a girl was waiting to pull me out. By the time she went back to help him, he was gone. Losing my dad left me, my four brothers, and my mom alone. We had to figure out how to live with our new normal. My mom told me years later that she was determined to make sure her kids “did not become statistics.” She did everything in her power to give us all the opportunities we needed in life. Her motto was to not just survive but to thrive. Like Maya Angelou said, “We may encounter many defeats, but we must not be defeated.” Growing up in a single parent household taught me the importance of community. We wouldn’t have made it if we didn’t have family and friends full of love ready to support us every step of the way. This taught me to have compassion for everyone. You truly never know what someone is or has gone through in life. We are all facing our own struggles. Advice I would give to someone who has gone through similar circumstances is to find your people. Don’t let yourself become isolated, and accept love from others. No matter what you think, there will always be someone who cares about your well being and who is ready and willing to help.

For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to pursue a career in healthcare. I have always been an empathetic person and had a desire to help others since I was a little girl. As an African American who grew up in Texas for half of my life, I knew that stood out. I never felt less than or less capable though. This is because my parents taught me that I could be more. My dad moved to America as an immigrant from Nigeria to pursue a college degree. He worked from the ground up to make something of himself. He was one of the first people in his family to go and seek a better life. My mom, as a mixed woman who came from a large family in Illinois, was told that she couldn’t be more. She broke those barriers and was the first one of her siblings to branch out and seek higher education, even though none of the others had done that yet. She then used her career to provide for five young children on her own after my father died. When I join the medical field, I desire to make a true impact on those around me. I’m going to follow my parent’s example and break barriers. My goal is to use the ideals and skills that I have learned growing up to touch people’s hearts. I desire to bring joy and hope into the darkest times. I know that even going to get a simple check up can give people anxiety, and I want to bring them peace. Careers in healthcare are known to be some of the most difficult careers whether you’re in school or on the job. I’m going to show myself that I can do more than I ever thought I could. I’m going to push myself and strive to be better every step of the way. I want to aim high so that I can show others they can as well. Racial diversity and representation is important in healthcare, as with all other fields, to make others feel seen. I know that I unconsciously scan every place I go to see if there are other black people. When there are others like me, I feel like I’m not alone. When I’m working in healthcare I want someone to walk in, see me, and feel more comfortable and inspired. A lot of African Americans feel like they can’t pursue what they want to due to limitations. With my career I want to show that you can achieve anything you put your mind to no matter who you are or where you come from.

I have participated in track and field as a sprinter since I was in 7th grade. It has been one of the only sports where I feel like my best self because I can work towards achieving one goal after the next. I didn’t always feel this way about track. I originally joined just because I didn’t feel like I was good enough to do other sports like basketball or soccer. Track was just the next best thing, and I did it to stay active. That was until a new coach, Sarah Hagerty, came in my freshman year of high school. She ran track all through her high school career and was one of the best runners on her team. She also is one of the most joyful people I have ever met. The year that she became a coach at our school, the whole atmosphere of the team shifted. There was much more unity and encouragement between teammates. She isn’t someone who stands for putting others down or leaving people out. I always felt safe to talk to her about any and everything, sport related or not. She never made me feel like I was less than or unworthy on the days I wasn’t doing my best. She made me realize that I was capable of more and inspired me to work harder. I always thought that I was destined to just be average. Coach Hagerty taught me ways to change that. Her being my coach made me shift my mindset. If I wanted to be better, I had to make myself better. Something she liked to say was, “if you want to run faster, then run faster.” I now had a passion for track and strived to improve with each race I competed in. In junior year, I ended up being named the girls sprinting captain. I did my best to exemplify how Coach Hagerty coached in the way I lead others. I made an effort to be an encouragement to all, no matter what stage they were in. I made connections with people I wouldn’t usually have, and learned a lot about my teammates. I was always up for whatever I was asked to do to benefit the team. I ran relays I normally didn’t when I was needed and helped out during practices. Even though I took on a bigger load than I ever had in the past, I did it with joy in my heart. At the end of the season I was awarded with the title “outstanding valuable runner.” I was happy to do whatever was required of me because I used Coach Hagerty as a role model. If it wasn’t for her I might not have ended my track career before it even started.

I've been going to Disney World since 2011. This year might seem like just another year to anyone else, but this was the year that my father died. He died during what was supposed to be a fun family vacation. The few months after his death were hard for my whole family. My mom had become a widow with five young children and we needed some joy in our lives. My dad had always wanted to take a trip to Walt Disney World. My mom, on the other hand, always pushed back on this idea. She thought it was too expensive and that it would be a waste of time. Undoubtedly, family vacations would always feel different and even have a bit of fear attached to them after the death of my father. The December following his death, my mom decided to take us to Disney World. While this trip was for fun and family time, it was also in remembrance of my dad. I remember sitting on top of my aunt's shoulders watching the Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights and tearing up because it looked so cool and I was sad my dad wasn’t there to see it too. That’s also the earliest memory I have of being happy again after his death. We fell in love with Disney World and we became Disney Vacation Club members that same year. Since then, Disney has had a special place in all of our hearts. We have gone back every year, sometimes even taking multiple trips in the same year. Disney has become like my second home. Going to Walt Disney World makes me feel more connected to my dad even though he’s not here anymore. He’s the whole reason we started going in the first place. The moment we get on the property I am filled with giddiness and ready for whatever adventures are about to ensue. Our favorite resort to stay at is Saratoga Springs. This may seem like an odd choice because many people think this resort is boring, but weirdly, that’s kind of why we enjoy it. It captures the serenity of Florida while also still giving you that Disney charm. It truly gives off that home away from home feeling after a long day at the parks or an 8-hour long shopping spree at Disney Springs. I’ve heard people say that it isn’t “Disney enough” in its theming and decor. Let’s be honest though, nobody wants to have just spent a whole day surrounded by Disney characters, music, and rides and then come back to a portrait of Peter Pan staring at them in their sleep. What I love about Saratoga is the subtlety of it. Instead of in-your-face decorations, there are silhouettes of horse jockey helmets shaped like Mickey Mouse. Just enough to make you say, “Wow, that's cool,” but not too much so that you get sick of it. A lot of people don’t understand what’s so special about Disney and I get it. To them, it’s just some overpriced theme park for little kids. For me, Disney World is so much more than that. It’s a reminder to not take things for granted and to enjoy time with your loved ones while you can. It’s an escape from the real world. Somewhere where you can just forget about your troubles for a week and eat a Mickey pretzel. I know that the Disney company isn’t perfect, nothing is. But I'll always remember that Disney is the place I first felt joy again after the death of my dad.