My mother is the reason I am who I am today. She raised me by herself and made sacrifices throughout my entire life. I want to show her that her sacrifices weren't in vain. I am a student-athlete who was involved in many things growing up. She was there for every track meet, football game, and any other event I was involved in. My mother told me at a very young age, that not going to college wasn't an option for me. She never completed college and she stressed that she doesn't want me to struggle like she does because she doesn't have a degree. My education is one of the most important things to her. She shares her thoughts and feelings on why she didn't go back to school. She grew up in the Englewood area of Chicago, which is a forgotten area. She put herself through a trade school to become a medical assistant right after I was born. Before that, she only had an HS diploma. So, I have listed what she has had to say and I want to continue to make her proud. I want to study engineering in college. I want to be an example of what you can become coming from an impoverished area. I live on the south side of Chicago in an area that has been forgotten. After graduating I would like to come back to my neighborhood and other areas that have been forgotten to inspire and be a mentor for those who will follow in my footsteps. I would like to be a mirror for young African American children. I would like to work on a project to help transform the appearance of the area. If your space is nice looking, it may help you feel better about yourself and you will have pride. I know it's not going to be easy, but I am determined to go on and get a degree. I want to become successful and come back to my community to show others that if I can do it, so can they. We have to inspire those closest to us to make a change in our community. There is so much despair and poverty in the black neighborhoods of Chicago and I want to be part of a solution and not a continuance of the problems. If I can come back and inspire just one person, I will feel that my hard work wasn't in vain.

Adversity and challenges shape the way I look and respond to the people around me, how I appreciate myself, and what motivates me when I’m part of a team. I have played High School football for three going on four years after this season. Last year was the second year I started on the Varsity team. First it was going well, and I had no problems. But this slowly came to an end with our quarterback. He, our quarterback, began causing problems for me and it felt like he was trying to turn the team against me. He would act like he was my friend, but I still felt like something was off about him. I got the feeling that he resented me for some reason. He then started acting towards my suspicion. He started talking about me behind my back. I play wide receiver for my team, and I learned that he stated that he only had one person he could depend on to catch the ball, and I wasn’t that person. I was also going to a trainer that I had been training with for years and he didn’t like that. He tried to bully me into going to train with him and some of my teammates at a place where my mother and I didn’t feel was a safe environment for me. He made comments that I thought “I was all that” and special because I had a personal trainer. This drove a wedge between me and my teammates He really tried to pressure me to do things I didn’t want to do. I felt like an outcast. It started to affect my mental health, my game, and my confidence. I started to doubt myself and wonder if I was dependable and if I was any good. In the beginning I avoided confrontation and just went along as if nothing was going on. But when the QB told me that if I didn’t do what he wanted, he wouldn't throw me the ball in the game, that was it. I then had to tell him that he was overstepping his place. He and his parent had to have a meeting with me and my parent along with our coach. He did stop bothering me after the meeting, but I still thought about what he had said. I also wondered if the whole team felt the same way about me since I wasn’t really in the mix. I started to outcast myself and talk to my own teammates less. I talked to my family, mentors, and trainers and they encouraged me. They talked about how talented I was and how much of a hard worker I was. They spoke about things that I never saw in myself. I then began to see how talented I am and how it was being limited by my mentality. That motivated me to work harder. I worked to improve my confidence and my game. I went to football camps and started playing better than I had ever played. My body was better and my game was on point. After all of my work and dedication to getting better, I started to receive recognition at camps. This year I am ranked as one of the top receivers in Illinois. The challenges I faced with my QB showed me that I can’t let what others say define me. I learned that I will continue to work, prove every one of my doubters wrong, always be my best self, and let the work, actions, mindset, and accomplishments I bring to a team speak for me.

I had to learn how to balance sports and my academics. I had trouble when I first started playing football in elementary school. I would be so involved and excited about playing football that I didn't finish so well because I was tired from practice. I would put off doing my homework and sometimes big projects that were due. I was focused on sports only and allowed my grades to slip. My mother would ask if I had completed my work and I would say I had, knowing that I had more to do. Once I received my report card, my mother made me quit the team to focus on school. She explained that it wasn't just because my grades had slipped, it was also because I began to lie about my work. Her pulling me out of football was an ego crush and embarrassing to the team. My mother made me tell my Coach why I was quitting the team, and in turn, my Coach made me tell my teammates. That was the hardest part. My teammates said they understood, but how much could a ten-year-old understand and make sense at that age? I think they just felt bad because I wouldn't be there any longer and we had a few games left. That taught me a lesson, that if given the chance again, I wouldn't mess up. She allowed me to play again the next year and I did much better with staying on task for the next 2 years of elementary school. Once I began high school, I promised my mother that I would stay on top of my work still if she allowed me to continue. She did allow me to try out for the team. I began to learn and use better study habits and I also began to talk to my teachers when I started to struggle. That helped me tremendously stay on task. Football season wasn't the only time that I had to keep myself focused. Towards the end of the school year with summer around the corner was a task as well. As the weather changed, it began to be harder and harder to stay in an study. But with help from my teachers and my Mom, I continued to stay on task. It was suggested that I take a notebook to each class and write down my assignments so that I could keep on top of them. Writing down my assignments really helped. I also got a tutor to help me with math. I was doing ok in math already, but extra help couldn't hurt. I am focused now more than ever to continue my education and make something of myself.