How do I, CP Bowles, embody selflessness? Since Oxford Dictionary defines selflessness as "concern more with the needs and wishes of others than with one's own," most students that are studying a subject that revolves around helping others would say, "by what I am doing now," but that is only half of the answer. Putting others (two and four-legged) before myself as always been a must in my book, but after school is completely finalized, embodying selflessness will be taken to an extremely different level. Since 2010, starting an equestrian program for veterans has been a colossal aspiration, but due to recent happenings, that dream has evolved into a desire to start a program for veterans, first responders, and recovering addicts to break and train slaughter-bound colts rescued from kill pens to become therapy lesson horses for an equestrian center I have longed to open for people with mental health problems. For the horses who are to advanced or spirited to be therapy horses, they will become broncs, reining, cutting, roping, or barrel horses for a Christian based rodeo school I plan to open for underprivileged, at-risk, disadvantaged, and troubled youth. The last program is mainly beneficial to the people of Beaufort, North Carolina, but anyone who has horses and is willing and able to travel to Beaufort can participate. Due to being a coastal tourist town, after December, Beaufort is a ghost town, and unless a person saves every penny during the tourist season, they are penniless from January until April, so starting a once a month weekend program for people to ride horses on Beaufort's Front Street to financially help the restaurants, stores, stables, and lodging facilities has to happen. My family suffers every year from Beaufort only having seasonal employment, so once I am able to prevent other families from struggling this time of year, I will. After being a firefighter and living everyday life, there are multiple different examples of how I have helped someone in need, but due to limited space, I can only list the ones that stick out the most. The first person ended up being adopted into the family; his name is Kevin Dale Murdock, but my family calls him, "Lil Kev." Kev was a very good od mine, after himself in a really bad situation, I had a talk with my mom, and the Bowles Family took him in. The next person is my best friend Allie; due to being a foster child to a family that fostered for the money and not for the heart, Allie stayed with my family a lot and became an "Honorary Bowles." The most recent is my fiancé, Dyllan Trey Thomas, and the help provided was more of begging than anything, but it saved his life. Due to multiple health problems, Dyll was ventilated and airlifted to Duke Regional Hospital. After the squaring everything away and the three-hour drive, by the time I got to his bedside, the doctors were saying he was a lost cause. I explained to them that Dyll and I had a two-year-old son whose whole world revolves around his daddy, and I could not tel him, "Daddy is not coming home." After that, a few phone calls were made, and they did everything possible. After being comatose almost five days, he finally woke up. It is pretty clear most people my age have not helped others in the same way I have or plan to helped/help other, but I was raised to love the least of these. If someone were to check my profile link, they will see everything accomplished.

Regenerative agriculture uses livestock to till or clear land without removing nitrogen from the soil, as animal droppings provide the necessary nitrogen for the land. There are many ways regenerative agriculture can be accomplished in numerous ways, but an abundance of farm and ranchers favor fencing overgrown land and releasing poultry or swine to remove ground foliage. Another way is by placing hay bales on top of unwanted vegetation and releasing cattle to plow it down as they eat; running sheep behind or with cattle will help clear what they will not eat. Then running goats behind sheep will clear high vines that other animals cannot reach or eat, like kudzu. Once the land is cleared, it can be planted in various types of crops. After completing Fall 2023 classes, regenerative agriculture is how the Bowles-Thomas Family will proceed in clearing their next plot of land, because not on does it clear land for crops and housing, it provides meat to eat and wool to insulate housing. After completing Fall 2023 classes, regenerative agriculture is how the Bowles-Thomas family will proceed in clearing their next plot of land, because not only does this type of agriculture clear land for crops and housing, it also provides meat that can be harvested for consumption and wool that can be used to insulate housing. Flag Message: I can do all thing through Christ who gives me strength!

Being raised on a small family farm in rural Southwestern Virginia, trade skills have always been a major part of my life, because trade skills are how my family put food on the table. My dad started going to work at my paternal grandfather's construction business at three years old; my dad wound up dropping out of ninth-grade and going into business with my grandfather doing everything from carpentry to heavy equipment operating to septic pumping to masonry to agricultural, farming, and ranch work. In 2001, when he was thirty-three years old, my dad went into business for himself and still does everything he has been doing for the past fifty-two years. My maternal grandfather worked and retired from Bassett Furniture as a woodworking plant supervisor, but he also restored vehicle, farmed tobacco, and trained horses, and until June 4, 2023, when he went to be with the Lord, he was known for doing random carpentry projects with myself; that man did everything, and I miss him and the projects shared between him and i terribly; he is the reason I am doing everything I am trying to do now. I have my paternal family's name, but my "Papa Hancock" is the one who took the time to make I was taught what he knew; being taught to become self-sufficient at a young age can save a ton of money. Veterans’ issues, first responders' issues, economical gaps, unemployment, animal welfare, mental health, substance abuse, and juvenile justice along with every other social issue that is directed towards and/or deals with today's youth. Why do I care about them, because they have effected my life in some sort of way. If it was not my life directly, it was a loved one's life. Besides carrying on my grandfather's legacy, they are the reasons why I am working so hard to find tuition and go to school. Most courses taken that provides change to these issues are not covered by tuition assistance from the government; therefore, I have to pay out of pocket or through scholarships. I want to start a program for veterans, first responders, and recovering addicts to break and train slaughter-bound colts rescued from kill pens to become therapy and lesson horses for the equestrian therapy facility I plan to open for people with mental health problems. The colts that are to advanced to be therapy horses will become roping, cutting, barrel, and reining horses for a Christian based rodeo school I plan to open for underprivileged, at-risk, disadvantaged, and troubled youth that is based off self-improvement points. Unlike most sport programs that terminate kids for having C's, this one will give kids a chance to excel, be a part of something, and learn every characteristic trait rodeo offers. Being raised in rural Southwestern Virginia, I plan to opening them there, but where I live in Beaufort, North Carolina, I want to help my current community. Most do not know that Beaufort is a coastal tourist town that becomes a ghost town from October until March. Unless someone saves every penny during the tourist season, they are penniless the rest of the year; I am determined to change that by starting a monthly weekend program for anyone with horses who will travel to Beaufort to ride horses on the Waterfront the entire weekend. Hopefully, it will help the stores, restaurants, stables, and lodging facilities in Beaufort financially during the off season and money to save during tourist season. This is another reason why I am in the trades program; I am learning to build from the ground up.

While volunteering at Patrick Henry Volunteer Fire Department Company Fourteen, everytime a call came over the pager Company Fourteen, an unexplainable feeling would take over my body. I was quick to notice it was from the excitement of helping others by being a part of something, and that was one of my first inspirations. As a teenager and young adult, I would volunteer with multiple animal organizations and was able to teach the public about everything the organizations did and why, about the animals, and how it saved my life. Currently, I have a distinguished idea for the next project and/or projects I desire to lead in my community, and my inspirations are my son, fiancé, grandfather, brother, and horse. How have I worked to influence change in your community? By what I am doing now, applying for scholarships, so I can attend school to obtain the certifications, degrees, and licenses I need to start programs and facilities I desire to open. An abundance of schools and organizations I have to be certified through are not covered by tuition assistance from the government; anyone attending the courses have to either pay out of pocket or through scholarships. Some take out loans, but I am not financially capable of doing so. Carrying on my grandfather's legacy, my fiancé's near death experience, and an experience my brother witnessed while on duty are the reasons I am motivated to start these programs and facilities. I want to start a program for veterans, first responders, and recovering addicts to break and train slaughter-bound colts rescued from kill pens to become therapy and lesson horses for the equestrian therapy facility I plan to open for people with mental health problems. The colts that are to advanced to be therapy horses will become roping, cutting, barrel, and reining horses for a Christian based rodeo school I plan to open for underprivileged, at-risk, disadvantaged, and troubled youth that will be based on self-improvement points. Unlike most sport programs that terminate kids for having a two-point zero grade point average, this one will give kids a chance to excel, be a part of something, and learn every characteristic trait rodeo offers. Being raised in rural Southwestern Virginia, I plan to opening them there with the hopes of branching out, but where I live in Beaufort, North Carolina, I want to help my current community. Most do not know that Beaufort is a coastal tourist town that becomes a ghost town from October until March. Unless someone saves every penny during the tourist season, they are penniless the rest of the year; I am determined to change that by starting a once a month weekend program for anyone with horses that are willing to travel to Beaufort to ride horses on Front Street the entire weekend. Hopefully, it will give the stores, restaurants, stables, and lodging facilities in Beaufort the financial help needed during the off season and money to save during tourist season. My son and I plan to start a farrier service that hold affordable horseshoeing and hoof trimming events and serves both Southwestern Virginia and Eastern North Carolina. The Book of Matthew says, "The King will reply, 'Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me," so that is what I plan to do, and I will do everything I can to make sure these five project happen, because as for me, my house, and my horses, we will only serve the lord.

It all started on February 15, 2023; my fiancé, Dyllan, asked to be taken to Carteret General Hospital's Emergency Room, because he was having abdominal pain. He had a pseudocyst, and the cyst had caused pancreatitis and led to pulmonary edema, so they transported him to University of North Carolina Hospital at Rex. While he was at Rex, he had multiple procedures placing pancreas and lung drainage tubes. He was released from Rex March 12, 2023. After opening Resurrection Day gifts with Dyllan's and my two-year-old, Peyton-Sawyer, on April 10, 2023, he asked to go back to Carteret General. As soon as he arrived to Carteret, he asked to be transported, because after his previous visit, he knew there was nothing they could do for him. Instead, Carteret General let him lay there for two days until his oxygen intake level was eighty-six percent before calling for transport. I left Carteret General at ten o'clock at night April 12, 2023, and three hours later, I received a phone call being informed he was having to be intubated, so I rushed to the hospital. By the time I got to him, he was comatose, so I sat with him until six in the morning when Duke Regional Hospital's Life Flight decided to finally show up. After having to square everything away and the three-hour drive, I finally arrived to Duke Regional around noon. When I arrived, the doctors said he would be lucky to make it. I told them he had to make it, because there is a two-year-old boy at home whose life revolves around his daddy, so they agreed to do everything possible and put him on an extracorporeal membrane oxygenation machine. Due to the extracorporeal membrane oxygenation machine, he was transported to Duke University Hospital the night of April 13, 2023. Numerous events took place between April 13, 2023, and April 15, 2023; he was taken off the extracorporeal membrane oxygenation machine on April 15, 2023. The morning of April 17, 2023, I was playing with Peyton-Sawyer, and I received a phone call saying he was awake. He was hospitalized until June 1, 2023. The biggest challenge that was faced was almost losing him, because I almost had to explain to Peyton, the sweet baby that worships his dad, "Daddy is not coming home;" I could not imagine what Peyton and myself would do without Dyllan in our lives. How was I able to persevere? Prayer and Peyton are how. He was put in the coma on a Wednesday night and woke the following Monday. Therefore, I barely slept for five days, so I would pray. I contacted Christian radio stations and churches and asked them to put him on their prayer lists; I went on social media and begged for prayers. I had friends and family that are in ministries pray over him on speakerphone. Peyton-Sawyer could not see his daddy; he knew something bad was happening; he was not being himself, and when he and I were riding around The Duke Campus while Dyll's parents and my dad met with Dyll's doctors, Peyton wound up saying something about his daddy without anyone asking, so I spent every moment I could with him. During the past year, I have learned that the faith of everyone in my circle matters, because of it, Dyllan awoke; negativity is not for Hospital rooms. Percentages mean nothing. The battle belongs to God.

An amazing, loving, well-educated mom who loves her son more than air and is carrying on her grandpa's legacy by helping other using equine.

The biggest and most important plans for my future? Giving my son the best life, I could give him while carrying on my grandpa's legacy and helping others. How do I plan on doing this? In many ways, grab a seat and hang on, because it is going to be an exciting ride. When it comes to giving my son, Peyton, the best life possible, I mean get him out of the seasonal tourist town and decrepit 1980s trailer we live in now and into a big house with a big bedroom, farm, land, and backyard to play in. He has not had an uncomplicated way to go the past thirty-seven months he has been alive, but I promise you that is going to change. Running my own farrier service shall be expected as soon as I graduate from farrier school. Even if I cannot get into Virginia Tech's Vet School's Therapeutic Farrier Program, I will still have a basic farrier service for my son and me to run together. Starting a program for veterans, first responders, and recovering addicts and/or alcoholics to break and train slaughter-bound colts rescued from kill pens to become lesson and therapy horses for an equestrian therapy center I plan to open for people who suffer from mental health has become a new dream that has been acquired due to recent happenings. When my brother went into service in 2010, I became interested in opening an equine facility for servicemembers, but I have added to what is in the making. Since 2013, after having multiple teenagers come into my place of work to do community service work ordered by the court system, I have dreamt of starting a rodeo school for underprivileged, at-risk, disadvantaged, and/or troubled youth has been something that I have been wanting to accomplish; it would be based on self-improvement points, unlike most sports programs that kick adolescents off of the team for having less than a two-point zero grade point average, so the students will never have to worry about getting terminated. Once I have all my schooling and certifications, I promise you this will happen. This scholarship will help me pay for the schooling I need to have to obtain the schooling and certifications I need to open these businesses. Many of the classes I must take are not covered by financial aid, so I must pay them out of pocket; sadly, I do not have tens of thousands of dollars lying around anywhere, so I am going to have to take out multiple loans to afford everything. Peyton and I are depending on scholarships to help us build our future life and continue our grandpa's legacy by not only working with equine, but also helping others heal while equine and living the rodeo life. I was not able to make my grandfather proud while he was alive, so this gives me chance to have him look down with that smirk of a grin he had and say, "she did it."

A leader is defined as someone who is over another group of individuals, but that is not truly what makes someone a leader. A leader must have integrity, patience, confidence, courage, and honesty. They are to be trustworthy and put others before themselves. Each characteristic trait listed has multiple categories that can be broken down. Leaders are not just military officers, government officials, or superiors; anyone can be a leader. They must be a mentor that is full of knowledge. Leaders must be able to build their people up, but they also must supply discipline to their people when they mess up. When integrity is looked up in the dictionary, it is defined as, “the quality of honesty and possessing strong moral principles; moral uprightness; the state of not being divided but whole.” A leader needs to be known for being honest because their people need to be able to trust them. They need to be able to be dependable, so their people can depend on them. Mostly, leaders need to be able to take the blame, not blame others or point fingers. When mistakes are made, they need to own them and not give an excuse. One thing leaders should teach is, “If one fails, we all fail as a whole.” If they say, “This is what needs to be done, and it needs to be done this way,” then it should not be for the crew under them to do it that way, but they should do it too. The “do as I say, not as I do” beliefs should be put to a halt when it comes to leadership. One thing that is very hard to do is standing up and saying, “Yes, I did this, and yes, it was wrong, and I probably should not have done it, but I’m going to do everything in my power not to do it again;” that is what I feel integrity is. If somebody can do that, they can be respected as a leader. Courage is a word and/or subject that has come up in many essays. Most think that courage means just “being brave,” but when courage is put into categories, it is not only about bravery. For someone to have courage, they must have strength, but not just physical strength alone; they must be mentally and emotionally strong because when something bad happens, they cannot have a mental breakdown about it; they must keep it together and keep moving. They need to be able to accept what might happen, even though the odds may not be in their favor. For example, when a warrior goes into battle, he knows there is a chance he may get killed in action, but he keeps moving. The warrior is taking a significant risk, but he committed his people. The hardest part of courage is adaptability because change is never easy. Every leader must be able to have confidence because if they do not like something, they need to deal with it right then and there. Self-confidence is especially important. Like the warrior mentioned earlier, he is taking a stand in what he thinks is right, knows he may not come out alive, but has enough motive to keep moving forward. Courage and integrity are what a self-confident leader is made of. They go hand in hand to make something strong and mighty. When the traits of self-confidence are looked up, it defines courage and integrity as two of the four traits. If someone is going to be a self-confident leader, they must have the courage and integrity to do so.

How do I, CP Bowles, plan on positively impacting the world? By getting my completing my education. How will that impact the world? Well, let me explain what I am wanting to complete. First off, I love helping others (two and four-legged,) and I always have, so I received my Vet Office Management Career Diploma at Coastal Carolina Community College, and I graduated from Crystal Coast Fire Academy. I was working on my two-year Vet Tech Degree, but a few things happened. I was accepted into East Coast Horseshoeing School’s Fall Class, but I have to find $10k in tuition to attend; I need to complete the course by New Year’s 2024, so I can apply to Virginia Tech’s Vet School’s Therapeutic Farrier Program. I am hoping that Tech’s Therapeutic Program and my Vet Tech background can help me get into their Vet School. I plan on taking Equine Training, Assisted Therapy, Behavior, and Management at Animal Behavior Institute, Equine Studies Institute, Mustang Heritage Foundation, and Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship. I am applying to San Juan College to finish my Vet Tech. Again, how will all of that help change the world? I want to open a rodeo school for underprivileged, at-risk, disadvantaged, and/or troubled youth that is ran off of a self-improvement points based system, so they do not have to worry about getting kicked out; most sports and extracurricular activities will kick kids out for getting a D on their report cards, but this one will not. It will also offer jobs and career paths to the students. Once I finish my schooling in the equestrian field, I plan on starting a trust-building program for veterans, first-responders, and recovering addicts to break and train slaughter-bound colts rescued from kill pens to become lesson/therapy horses for the equestrian therapy facility I plan to open for people with mental health problems; jobs and career paths will also be provided to the people in these programs. I plan on the school and facility to being in my hometown, but I also plan on branching it out to other communities. I want to have a traveling equine service for low-income communities, and I want to be able to provide cheap vet care for large and companion animals in Eastern North Carolina and Southwestern Virginia. The town I am currently living in, Beaufort, North Carolina, is a coastal vacation town, so in the Winter, it becomes a ghost town. Since Beaufort use to be called, "Fishtown," I want to start a program called, "Horsetown;" it would consist of my horse friends that are willing and able to travel to Beaufort, coming to Beaufort one weekend out of every month and riding horses through town and onto front street. It will bring income to all of the stores, restaurants, and stables in the area.

Why do I care about protecting the oceans? Honestly? I'm not going to lie to you; I have many reasons, but my first reason isn't going to be the same as other contestants. My first reason is, the Atlantic Ocean help me build the family I have created, and this is how; there is a channel on the coast of Carolina that is leading south to the Atlantic called, Beaufort Inlet. In this inlet, there is a creek called, Taylor's Creek, and to the north, there is a stretch of land that runs parallel to the creek called, Beaufort Waterfront. On the east of the waterfront, there is a restaurant called, Dockhouse. On 28 June 2016, I started working there, and I met Dyllan Trey Thomas; even though I said, "I don't have the time for him," when his dad said, "This is my son Dyll; he's single," the very first time we met, he became the love of my life. Eight days from being four years later, we brought our son, Peyton-Sawyer Paige Thomas, into the world. This little channel that leads to the Atlantic has seen many of our ups, downs, accomplishments, failures, and best of all, a lot of our son's "first." Dyllan and I may be from and conceived our son in the Appalachians, but Peyt will forever be a beach boy. Not to mention, the ocean had a part in my labor; everyone knows storms rely on the warm pockets of water to become hurricanes, but did you know hurricanes can send you into labor? Well, they can, and our son was born in the middle of Isaias. Now to the part, you guys have probably read about fifty-thousand times while reading the other essays; did you know the oceans produce more oxygen than the rainforest? They produce 70%, and the rainforest only produces 28%. They absorb CO2, and that helps with temperatures, weather, and climates. The oceans hold 97% of the planet's water and produce mass qualities of protein-rich foods. Many creatures, jobs, communities, and transportation routes depend on the oceans. Many people use the oceans for vacations, hobbies, and therapy. If you've never listened to "Saltwater Gospel" by Eli Young Band, do it, you won't regret it. With Dockhouse being on the Beaufort Waterfront, you could say Dyll, Peyt, and I depend on the ocean, due to all of the tourists coming to vacation on our beaches; they usually come when the weather is nice, and as I said in the previous paragraph, the ocean controls the weather, temperatures, and climate. When the tourists are there, and it is warm and sunny outside, we make money. How might someone in the Equestrian Field/Veterinary Medicine like myself to protect the oceans, you ask? Not many people have heard of Beaufort, North Carolina, but rather it use to be called, "Fishtown," due to its heavy dependence on the fishing industry. After I we get our business and a couple of programs up and running, I want my family and me to start a program called, "Horsetown," where one weekend out of every month we get all of our equestrian friends from Appalachia and everywhere else to come to Beaufort, and we ride from the top of the waterfront to the end, so hopefully, they might fall in love with this little saltwater town, find true love for the ocean, and want to protect it.

Honestly? I have dreamt of being a vet since I came out of the womb on 2 March 1995, but there has always been a kind of setback that has gotten in the way; I think I may have found a way to make my dreams come true, and this is how. I have a Career Diploma in Vet Office Management, and I have done almost everything and anything you can do in the animal field. I was born with amblyopia, and I had to be homeschooled for a little while in elementary school, and I would stay with my uncle who was an avid coon hunter, so I was truly training and running coonhounds better than most grown men when I was in first grade. I have worked in clinics and shelters, and both helped me get to do some very cool things (livestock, exotics, and wildlife.) I was raised on a farm, so livestock, mostly equine has impacted my latest decision a lot. My adopted-family has a reptile rescue, zoo, and rehab, so I have handled crocodiles, gators, cobras, and large monitors. To obtain my Diploma, I had to shadow a wildlife rehabilitator, and that was amazing; I got to handle owls, hawks, squirrels, falcons, and everything else that came in. I attended Crystal Coast Fire Academy in 2015, and I had a Physical Training Instructor that raised and trained Belgian Malinois for First Responders; he found out what I did before I joined the academy, so guess what happened; I was training Belgian Malinois. As I said earlier, equine has impacted me all my life. My first pet was a fifteen years old quarter mix mare that I was born to (meaning my mom had her before I came along, and when I was born, she became mine; in all reality, I became her's, and everyone knew that, because they said I was her "baby.") I was in her saddle at six months of age, got my foot stepped on at two years of age, and she bit my toe while I was standing barefooted on the gate at the age of three (I didn't cry, because it hurt; I cried, because I thought she was my friend, and she bit me.) She died when I was nineteen, exactly a month before I left for the academy. I stayed in the pasture with her until 4 am in the sleet feeding her apple juice through a 20mL syringe. She's the reason I am starting Equine Behavior, Training, and Management classes very soon. Your first horse is like your first love, so I know there will never be another like her, but I can try to get one as close as I possibly can. Thanks to my love for horses I may have found a way to vet school. I plan on going to East Coast Horseshoeing School this Fall; after I graduate, I plan on attending Virginia Tech's Vet School's Therapeutic Farrier Program; I hope that can get me into the vet school's door. I am from Appalachia and live on the coast of Carolina, so I know poverty. I want to offer affordable vet and farrier work in those areas and hire loved ones to help me. I also want to open an affordable rodeo school for underprivileged/at-risk/troubled youth and an equine therapy facility for veterans and recovering addicts that will buy colts from kill pens for the two-legged patients to train to help with there mental health. I want to call it "The Unbroken Healing The Broken."