I first thought that maybe healthcare was interesting when I was doing CPR in the woods. I’ll come back to this. A few years ago, I never thought I would be in healthcare. Now I fall more in love with nursing every day. I don’t have a "sob story" medical experience that made me want to be a nurse, nor is my family particularly involved in healthcare. I've gotten odd looks from some of my nurse preceptors who ask, "You just decided you wanted to go into healthcare? Are you crazy?!" Unbeknownst to me, my mother has been saying that I'll be a nurse since I was 8 years old (I found out about this halfway through nursing school). Here are some things that I've learned about nursing and about myself. 1.My first exposure to healthcare was a CPR class in the woods. I never would have signed up for it, but it was a job requirement in high school. If you asked me then if I would ever be a nurse, I would’ve said "Not in a million years". I was fascinated by the science and the fact that it was so hands-on. I realized that maybe I should pursue this healthcare thing and that I wanted a job where I got to use my hands. 2. I realized I wanted to be a nurse when I got 2nd place in the Colorado State HOSA nursing competition. The event was hosted for high school students interested in healthcare and allowed me to explore different careers in healthcare. By this point, I was pretty set on going the paramedic route, but everyone kept telling me nursing was great, so I figured I'd give it a shot. I loved learning about the holistic aspect of nursing and how many different parts of healthcare nurses were involved in. So when I applied to colleges, I applied for nursing. 3. On one of my first days of nursing school, one of the upper level students told me that "nursing is one of the most altruistic professions." That sentiment resonated with me. I knew that I wanted to help people, but I hadn't realized how important having a net-positive impact on the world was. In my job as a CNA at the local hospital, one of the most meaningful things I've done for a patient is make a cup of hot chocolate so they can fall asleep easier. I feel like I've found purpose when I'm able to do something to make someone's day a little easier. My current passion in nursing is the medical-surgical units. I get to build relationships with my patients, I get to provide a bright spot in their day. I get to practice my skills and assessments. I fall a little bit more in love with nursing with each shift and clinical rotation and I'm excited to begin my career as a nurse. I found out about this scholarship through bold.org.

I first thought that maybe healthcare was interesting when I was doing CPR in the woods. I’ll come back to this. A few years ago, I never thought I would be in healthcare. Now I fall more in love with nursing every day. I don’t have a "sob story" medical experience that made me want to be a nurse, nor is my family particularly involved in healthcare. I've gotten odd looks from some of my nurse preceptors who ask, "You just decided you wanted to go into healthcare? Are you crazy?!" Unbeknownst to me, my mother has been saying that I'll be a nurse since I was 8 years old (I found out about this halfway through nursing school). Here are some things that I've learned about nursing and about myself. 1.My first exposure to healthcare was a CPR class in the woods. I never would have signed up for it, but it was a job requirement in high school. If you asked me then if I would ever be a nurse, I would’ve said "Not in a million years". I was fascinated by the science and the fact that it was so hands-on. I realized that maybe I should pursue this healthcare thing and that I wanted a job where I got to use my hands. 2. I realized I wanted to be a nurse when I got 2nd place in the Colorado State HOSA nursing competition. The event was hosted for high school students interested in healthcare and allowed me to explore different careers in healthcare. By this point, I was pretty set on going the paramedic route, but everyone kept telling me nursing was great, so I figured I'd give it a shot. I loved learning about the holistic aspect of nursing and how many different parts of healthcare nurses were involved in. So when I applied to colleges, I applied for nursing. 3. On one of my first days of nursing school, one of the upper level students told me that "nursing is one of the most altruistic professions." That sentiment resonated with me. I knew that I wanted to help people, but I hadn't realized how important having a net-positive impact on the world was. In my job as a CNA at the local hospital, one of the most meaningful things I've done for a patient is make a cup of hot chocolate so they can fall asleep easier. I feel like I've found purpose when I'm able to do something to make someone's day a little easier. My current passion in nursing is the medical-surgical units. I get to build relationships with my patients, I get to provide a bright spot in their day. I get to practice my skills and assessments. I fall a little bit more in love with nursing with each shift and clinical rotation and I'm excited to begin my career as a nurse. I am scheduled to do my senior capstone on the Telemetry/cardiac unit this summer. I am the Treasurer of my school's Student Nurse Association. In this position, I have volunteered with Project Cure to send medical supplies to under-served countries, and raised over $1000 for scholarship and career development opportunities for students at my school. I am also a Student Nurse Extern at my local hospital where I help patients with ADLs and assist the CNAs and nurses with their workload.

Imposter syndrome almost got the best of me in nursing school. In the fall of 2025, I started my second semester of nursing school. This was the first time I had ever worked in a hospital, and I was deeply intimidated by that. Over the summer, I had questioned whether I really wanted to be a nurse and if it was something that I would be good at. I was dreading going back to school and starting clinicals at the hospital. I walked to class the first day with tears in my eyes, struggling to pull myself together. I thought, "There is no way I could possibly do this." One of my mentors at my summer job liked to say "try me, not why me" to remind us to embrace challenges and not complain. He viewed challenge always as a positive thing to help you grow. After I walked to class crying, I wrote "TRY ME" on a sticky note and taped it to the wall beside my bed to remind myself to embrace challenge. Walking into the hospital setting was challenging, but the hardest part was walking in the door. Once I was there, I found a really welcoming environment and got a lot of great learning opportunities. These opportunities have furthered my education and understanding of nursing more than any classroom lecture ever could. I had really hard days where I would come home and cry from being overwhelmed and worn-out by everything I'd experienced over the last 12 hours. I would take a shower when I got home and try to figure out to how to shake off the weight of the suffering I had witness and find myself again. I had mornings where I'd wake up in the dark and think "I don't want to do this today". But I always went and did it and it was an overwhelmingly positive experience. Now, I am able to see the joys of life that still happen between the hardships of the hospital. I have seen impromptu weddings on the oncology floor, the relief of a hot shower after a week in bed, and the simple act of sitting with someone and listening to their frustrations. When I come home and shower now, I am not desperately trying to feel like myself, but reflecting on the little moments of joy that I saw throughout the day. For me, resiliency is a sticky note on a wall with a reminder that challenge helps you grow. I have practiced a lot of resiliency this semester and faced a lot of challenges. Because of this, I have begun to think of myself as a nurse, not just a nursing student. I'm now heading into my third semester of nursing school, which promises to be the most challenging one yet. And I will embrace the challenge and learn everything I can from it because I am resilient. In my third semester of nursing school, my motto is "Bloom Baby Bloom". It's a phrase taken from one of my favorite songs, a Wolf Alice song by the same name. It talks about how even the most beautiful flowers have to grow up by the weeds and fight to be strong. I feel like I've struggled through the weeds and made it out the other side. I fought my monsters and won a deep seated knowledge that I can be a Good Nurse. Imposter syndrome won't get the best of me and now I get to grow more confident day by day. I have had the opportunity to experience a lot of different specialties, which has fostered my interest in medical-surgical nursing and assured me that I don't want to work in the operating room. Receiving a scholarship means that I can continue to put my whole self into my education, into maintaining my 4.0 GPA and making the most of every clinical experience I am offered. Receiving a scholarship now means that I can save money that will go towards advanced certifications and graduate education when I graduate. I always want to put my best foot forward for my patients. That means having the knowledge and skills to take the best care of them. Acquiring that is a lifelong and a continual process, my education will not end when I graduate. Scholarships allow me to further my education and make the most of all of the educational opportunities available to me. My current passion in nursing is the medical-surgical units. I get to build relationships with my patients, I get to provide a bright spot in their day. I get to practice my skills and assessments. I fall a little bit more in love with nursing with each shift and clinical rotation and I'm excited to begin my career as a nurse.

I first thought that maybe healthcare was interesting when I was doing CPR in the woods. I’ll come back to this. A few years ago, I never thought I would be in healthcare. Now I fall more in love with nursing every day. I don’t have a "sob story" medical experience that made me want to be a nurse, nor is my family particularly involved in healthcare. I've gotten odd looks from some of my nurse preceptors who ask, "You just decided you wanted to go into healthcare? Are you crazy?!" Unbeknownst to me, my mother has been saying that I'll be a nurse since I was 8 years old (I found out about this halfway through nursing school). Here are some things that I've learned about nursing and about myself. 1.My first exposure to healthcare was a CPR class in the woods. I never would have signed up for it, but it was a job requirement in high school. If you asked me then if I would ever be a nurse, I would’ve said "Not in a million years". I was fascinated by the science and the fact that it was so hands-on. I realized that maybe I should pursue this healthcare thing and that I wanted a job where I got to use my hands. 2. I realized I wanted to be a nurse when I got 2nd place in the Colorado State HOSA nursing competition. The event was hosted for high school students interested in healthcare and allowed me to explore different careers in healthcare. By this point, I was pretty set on going the paramedic route, but everyone kept telling me nursing was great, so I figured I'd give it a shot. I loved learning about the holistic aspect of nursing and how many different parts of healthcare nurses were involved in. So when I applied to colleges, I applied for nursing. 3. On one of my first days of nursing school, one of the upper level students told me that "nursing is one of the most altruistic professions." That sentiment resonated with me. I knew that I wanted to help people, but I hadn't realized how important having a net-positive impact on the world was. In my job as a CNA at the local hospital, one of the most meaningful things I've done for a patient is make a cup of hot chocolate so they can fall asleep easier. I feel like I've found purpose when I'm able to do something to make someone's day a little easier. 4. During my operating room rotation, I realized how important building relationships with my patient was to me. As a socially awkward teenager, the belief that building quick connections is an unsolvable mystery has stuck with me, so I thought that maybe a place the OR would be easier. I had a sick feeling in my stomach when the patient, only a few years older than me, who was chatting with me a minute ago went limp as anesthesia ran through her IV. The surgeons covered her up and started the procedure. I thought she looked like a corpse on the table. This was the day I decided I wanted patients I could talk to. My current passion in nursing is the medical-surgical units. I get to build relationships with my patients, I get to provide a bright spot in their day. I get to practice my skills and assessments. I fall a little bit more in love with nursing with each shift and clinical rotation and I'm excited to begin my career as a nurse.

I first thought that maybe healthcare was interesting when I was doing CPR in the woods. I’ll come back to this. A few years ago, I never thought I would be in healthcare. Now I fall more in love with nursing every day. I don’t have a "sob story" medical experience that made me want to be a nurse, nor is my family particularly involved in healthcare. I've gotten odd looks from some of my nurse preceptors who ask, "You just decided you wanted to go into healthcare? Are you crazy?!" Unbeknownst to me, my mother has been saying that I'll be a nurse since I was 8 years old (I found out about this halfway through nursing school). Here are some things that I've learned about nursing and about myself. 1.My first exposure to healthcare was a CPR class in the woods. I never would have signed up for it, but it was a job requirement in high school. If you asked me then if I would ever be a nurse, I would’ve said "Not in a million years". I was fascinated by the science and the fact that it was so hands-on. I realized that maybe I should pursue this healthcare thing and that I wanted a job where I got to use my hands. 2. I realized I wanted to be a nurse when I got 2nd place in the Colorado State HOSA nursing competition. The event was hosted for high school students interested in healthcare and allowed me to explore different careers in healthcare. By this point, I was pretty set on going the paramedic route, but everyone kept telling me nursing was great, so I figured I'd give it a shot. I loved learning about the holistic aspect of nursing and how many different parts of healthcare nurses were involved in. So when I applied to colleges, I applied for nursing. 3. On one of my first days of nursing school, one of the upper level students told me that "nursing is one of the most altruistic professions." That sentiment resonated with me. I knew that I wanted to help people, but I hadn't realized how important having a net-positive impact on the world was. In my job as a CNA at the local hospital, one of the most meaningful things I've done for a patient is make a cup of hot chocolate so they can fall asleep easier. I feel like I've found purpose when I'm able to do something to make someone's day a little easier. 4. During my operating room rotation, I realized how important building relationships with my patient was to me. As a socially awkward teenager, the belief that building quick connections is an unsolvable mystery has stuck with me, so I thought that maybe a place the OR would be easier. I had a sick feeling in my stomach when the patient, only a few years older than me, who was chatting with me a minute ago went limp as anesthesia ran through her IV. The surgeons covered her up and started the procedure. I thought she looked like a corpse on the table. This was the day I decided I wanted patients I could talk to. My current passion in nursing is the medical-surgical units. I get to build relationships with my patients, I get to provide a bright spot in their day. I get to practice my skills and assessments. I fall a little bit more in love with nursing with each shift and clinical rotation and I'm excited to begin my career as a nurse.

I first thought that maybe healthcare was interesting when I was doing CPR in the woods. I’ll come back to this. A few years ago, I never thought I would be in healthcare. Now I fall more in love with nursing every day. I don’t have a "sob story" medical experience that made me want to be a nurse, nor is my family particularly involved in healthcare. I've gotten odd looks from some of my nurse preceptors who ask, "You just decided you wanted to go into healthcare? Are you crazy?!" Unbeknownst to me, my mother has been saying that I'll be a nurse since I was 8 years old (I found out about this halfway through nursing school). Here are some things that I've learned about nursing and about myself. 1.My first exposure to healthcare was a CPR class in the woods. I never would have signed up for it, but it was a job requirement in high school. If you asked me then if I would ever be a nurse, I would’ve said "Not in a million years". I was fascinated by the science and the fact that it was so hands-on. I realized that maybe I should pursue this healthcare thing and that I wanted a job where I got to use my hands. 2. I realized I wanted to be a nurse when I got 2nd place in the Colorado State HOSA nursing competition. The event was hosted for high school students interested in healthcare and allowed me to explore different careers in healthcare. By this point, I was pretty set on going the paramedic route, but everyone kept telling me nursing was great, so I figured I'd give it a shot. I loved learning about the holistic aspect of nursing and how many different parts of healthcare nurses were involved in. So when I applied to colleges, I applied for nursing. 3. On one of my first days of nursing school, one of the upper level students told me that "nursing is one of the most altruistic professions." That sentiment resonated with me. I knew that I wanted to help people, but I hadn't realized how important having a net-positive impact on the world was. In my job as a CNA at the local hospital, one of the most meaningful things I've done for a patient is make a cup of hot chocolate so they can fall asleep easier. I feel like I've found purpose when I'm able to do something to make someone's day a little easier. 4. During my operating room rotation, I realized how important building relationships with my patient was to me. As a socially awkward teenager, the belief that building quick connections is an unsolvable mystery has stuck with me, so I thought that maybe a place the OR would be easier. I had a sick feeling in my stomach when the patient, only a few years older than me, who was chatting with me a minute ago went limp as anesthesia ran through her IV. The surgeons covered her up and started the procedure. I thought she looked like a corpse on the table. This was the day I decided I wanted patients I could talk to. My current passion in nursing is the medical-surgical units. I get to build relationships with my patients, I get to provide a bright spot in their day. I get to practice my skills and assessments. I fall a little bit more in love with nursing with each shift and clinical rotation and I'm excited to begin my career as a nurse.

Imposter syndrome almost got the best of me in nursing school. In the fall of 2025, I started my second semester of nursing school. This was the first time I had ever worked in a hospital, and I was deeply intimidated by that. Over the summer, I had questioned whether I really wanted to be a nurse and if it was something that I would be good at. I was dreading going back to school and starting clinicals at the hospital. I walked to class the first day with tears in my eyes, struggling to pull myself together. I thought, "There is no way I could possibly do this." One of my mentors at my summer job liked to say "try me, not why me" to remind us to embrace challenges and not complain. He viewed challenge always as a positive thing to help you grow. After I walked to class crying, I wrote "TRY ME" on a sticky note and taped it to the wall beside my bed to remind myself to embrace challenge. Walking into the hospital setting was challenging, but the hardest part was walking in the door. Once I was there, I found a really welcoming environment and got a lot of great learning opportunities. These opportunities have furthered my education and understanding of nursing more than any classroom lecture ever could. I had really hard days where I would come home and cry from being overwhelmed and worn-out by everything I'd experienced over the last 12 hours and mornings where I'd wake up in the dark and think "I don't want to do this today". But I always went and did it and it was an overwhelmingly positive experience. For me, resiliency is a sticky note on a wall with a reminder that challenge helps you grow. I have practiced a lot of resiliency this semester and faced a lot of challenges. Because of this, I have begun to think of myself as a nurse, not just a nursing student. I'm now heading into my third semester of nursing school, which promises to be the most challenging one yet. And I will embrace the challenge and learn everything I can from it because I am resilient. In my third semester of nursing school, my motto is "Bloom Baby Bloom". It's a phrase taken from one of my favorite songs, a Wolf Alice song by the same name. It talks about how even the most beautiful flowers have to grow up by the weeds and fight to be strong. I feel like I've struggled through the weeds and made it out the other side. I fought my monsters and won a deep seated knowledge that I can be a Good Nurse. Imposter syndrome won't get the best of me and now I get to grow more confident day by day.

I first thought that maybe healthcare was interesting when I was doing CPR in the woods. I’ll come back to this. A few years ago, I never thought I would be in healthcare. Now I fall more in love with nursing every day. I don’t have a "sob story" medical experience that made me want to be a nurse, nor is my family particularly involved in healthcare. I've gotten odd looks from some of my nurse preceptors who ask, "You just decided you wanted to go into healthcare? Are you crazy?!" Unbeknownst to me, my mother has been saying that I'll be a nurse since I was 8 years old (I found out about this halfway through nursing school). Here are some things that I've learned about nursing and about myself. 1.My first exposure to healthcare was a CPR class in the woods. I never would have signed up for it, but it was a job requirement in high school. If you asked me then if I would ever be a nurse, I would’ve said "Not in a million years". I was fascinated by the science and the fact that it was so hands-on. I realized that maybe I should pursue this healthcare thing and that I wanted a job where I got to use my hands. 2. I realized I wanted to be a nurse when I got 2nd place in the Colorado State HOSA nursing competition. The event was hosted for high school students interested in healthcare and allowed me to explore different careers in healthcare. By this point, I was pretty set on going the paramedic route, but everyone kept telling me nursing was great, so I figured I'd give it a shot. I loved learning about the holistic aspect of nursing and how many different parts of healthcare nurses were involved in. So when I applied to colleges, I applied for nursing. 3. On one of my first days of nursing school, one of the upper level students told me that "nursing is one of the most altruistic professions." That sentiment resonated with me. I knew that I wanted to help people, but I hadn't realized how important having a net-positive impact on the world was. In my job as a CNA at the local hospital, one of the most meaningful things I've done for a patient is make a cup of hot chocolate so they can fall asleep easier. I feel like I've found purpose when I'm able to do something to make someone's day a little easier. 4. During my operating room rotation, I realized how important building relationships with my patient was to me. As a socially awkward teenager, the belief that building quick connections is an unsolvable mystery has stuck with me, so I thought that maybe a place the OR would be easier. I had a sick feeling in my stomach when the patient, only a few years older than me, who was chatting with me a minute ago went limp as anesthesia ran through her IV. The surgeons covered her up and started the procedure. I thought she looked like a corpse on the table. This was the day I decided I wanted patients I could talk to. My current passion in nursing is the medical-surgical units. I get to build relationships with my patients, I get to provide a bright spot in their day. I get to practice my skills and assessments. I fall a little bit more in love with nursing with each shift and clinical rotation and I'm excited to begin my career as a nurse.

I first thought that maybe healthcare was interesting when I was doing CPR in the woods. Just a few years ago, I never thought I would be in healthcare. Now I fall more in love with nursing every day. I don’t have a "sob story" medical experience that made me want to be a nurse, nor is my family particularly involved in healthcare. I've gotten odd looks from some of my nurse preceptors who ask, "You just decided you wanted to go into healthcare? Are you crazy?!" Unbeknownst to me, my mother has been saying that I'll be a nurse since I was 8 years old (I found out about this halfway through nursing school). Here are some things that I've learned about nursing and about myself. 1.My first exposure to healthcare was a CPR class in the woods. I never would have signed up for it, but it was a job requirement in high school. If you asked me then if I would ever be a nurse, I would’ve said "Not in a million years". I was fascinated by the science and the fact that it was so hands-on. I realized that maybe I should pursue this healthcare thing and that I wanted a job where I got to use my hands. 2. I realized I wanted to be a nurse when I got 2nd place in the Colorado State HOSA nursing competition. The event was hosted for high school students interested in healthcare and allowed me to explore different careers in healthcare. By this point, I was pretty set on going the paramedic route, but everyone kept telling me nursing was great, so I figured I'd give it a shot. I loved learning about the holistic aspect of nursing and how many different parts of healthcare nurses were involved in. So when I applied to colleges, I applied for nursing. 3. On one of my first days of nursing school, one of the upper level students told me that "nursing is one of the most altruistic professions." That sentiment resonated with me. I knew that I wanted to help people, but I hadn't realized how important having a net-positive impact on the world was. In my job as a CNA at the local hospital, one of the most meaningful things I've done for a patient is make a cup of hot chocolate so they can fall asleep easier. I feel like I've found purpose when I'm able to do something to make someone's day a little easier. 4. During my operating room rotation, I realized how important building relationships with my patient was to me. As a socially awkward teenager, the belief that building quick connections is an unsolvable mystery has stuck with me, so I thought that maybe a place the OR would be easier. I had a sick feeling in my stomach when the patient, only a few years older than me, who was chatting with me a minute ago went limp as anesthesia ran through her IV. The surgeons covered her up and started the procedure. I thought she looked like a corpse on the table. This was the day I decided I wanted patients I could talk to. My current passion in nursing is the medical-surgical units. I get to build relationships with my patients, I get to provide a bright spot in their day. I get to practice my skills and assessments. I fall a little bit more in love with nursing with each shift and clinical rotation and I'm excited to begin my career as a nurse.

I knew where I wanted to go when my friend was choking on an apple in the woods. I had just gotten my first aid certification for a summer job. It was kind of interesting an interesting class but it wasn't life altering. My team was taking a little walk in the middle of the day and Brooke was suddenly coughing, wheezing, hands at her throat. She made a really good show of it. I knew it was coming and I still hesitated, unsure if it was real or not. Our group stood there, watching her choke, her apple falling to the ground, frozen. And then I did something about it. I stepped forward, I asked for consent, I did the Heimlich maneuver, my teammates unfroze, and I directed them on what to do. Brooke slumped dramatically in my arms, falling into cardiac arrest, and we pantomimed CPR. It was training exercise, sprung on us in the middle of day, as if it were real. When I stepped up and led my team through the scenario, I was terrified. But I did it. I missed a few steps, but I helped Brooke. And it gave me the confidence to keep going. I got my first CPR/first aid certification as part of a summer program to introduce students to the job of park rangers and first responders. I think I had cartoon hearts in my eyes the whole summer. This experience threw me out of my comfort zone and into the deep end but I fell in love with medicine. Before this program, I didn't have a specific idea for after high school. After Brooke pretended to choke and die in the woods, I was set on medicine. It took a while to figure out what specifically I wanted to do in the medical field. My senior year of high school, I had the opportunity to take an Emergency Medical Responder class as part of my coursework. It built on the skills and confidence I learned in the woods over the summer and made me more invested in medicine. This class was incredible because not only did I earn a certification before I graduated from high school, but I also got to explore different fields of medicine through HOSA-Future Health Professionals. This organization runs competitions in different medical fields and I participated in the nursing and pharmacology competitions. These were fields that I didn't know very much about but wanted to explore. In the state of Colorado, I won 1st in Pharmacology and 2nd in Nursing. I won 5th in Nursing in the international competition and this convinced to make nursing my major. It is a tough field and it challenges me all the time. My first semester of college has had me wading through Medical Microbiology and waves of self-doubt. There are many times when I feel like I can't do it but there has never been a day when I wanted to quit. I am in school to learn the skills I need and I know will master them. When I graduate, there are so many fields I'd like to work in. My current goal right now is to work in the emergency room. I want to work in this setting because it will allow me to make an immediate and tangible difference in so many people's lives. I want to be an advocate for those who cannot advocate for themselves. Even when I am unsure of myself, I am still motivated to work towards this goal. It excites and scares me everyday. And I'm so ready for it.