Seeing my father working as a firefighter ignited a spark in me to explore the first responder/emergency services realm. Growing up he was not only my hero but countless others. During the large wildfires in southern California in the early 2000’s I distinctly remember some previous neighbors lining the street with signs and gracious words thanking my father for saving their house. Watching my father make that big of a difference in their lives inspired me to do the same. I started as an EMT to test the waters, so to speak, in the medical world and was hooked. But after working for 3 years as an EMT I knew I wanted to be able to do more and help more people. I knew to do that I ultimately needed to advance my education and my scope of practice. For the past 2 years I have been working and going to school with aspirations to apply to nursing school. Through perseverance, patience and the encouragement of my father I was finally accepted into my BSN program in March of 2022. To make things even sweeter, yesterday was my first day of Nursing School. This next amazing chapter of my life is now underway. I strive to emulate my father and the many other healthcare providers I have encountered. From the compassion to the care, to the above and beyond characteristics I have witnessed. I know that I have a great foundation to build upon to become a great nurse that hopefully one day someone may look upon me and feel the same way. I have many ideas of where this new career will take me, but ultimately I aspire to work as a Burn Care Nurse at a Level I trauma center. When I was younger my father took me to volunteer at San Diego ‘Burn Run’ and San Diego ‘Camp Beyond the Scars’. Interacting with children and adults who had been seriously burned during their life time helped shape the kind of nurse I want to be. Essentially coming full circle to help people like the ones my dad has saved in his life time. Eventually I would like to take my nursing into the traveling realm. Like Cindy, I have a love of nature. In fact I collect patches from every National Park I visit. My dream is to use an opportunity as a travel nurse to see many of these National Parks. My compassion for others and love of science make me perfect for this field. I cannot wait to help make a difference in others lives.I look forward to this rewarding career and cannot wait to begin. And finally I am so grateful for the nurses that have come before me creating and shaping the roles of the nurse into what they are today.

As a current Nursing student, a healthy lifestyle is important for an array of reasons. The first of which, is that my job depends on me being healthy. Not just physically in order to perform my duties, but mentally as well. There is a saying in the healthcare field of "You can't help others if you can't help yourself". I would not be able to do my job if I did not take care of myself first. With mental health being at the forefront these days I find it especially easy to find ways to always improve my mental wellbeing. Secondly, as a nurse it is important to educate patients on the importance of taking care of oneself. It is a much easier ask of patients, when you yourself abide by these values as well. Instead of using the 'Do as i say, not as I do' logic. I maintain my healthy lifestyle by going for a one hour walk everyday. The goal is just to get outside and move. For my mental health I make sure to stay off of social media platforms and electronics at 8PM prompt. I will pull out a journal and decompress from my day. I find that consistency is key when it comes to a healthy lifestyle, but if you have to choose, something is better than nothing.

As a business owner that was forced by the governor of my state to shut down for the majority of 2020 due to COVID, I unfortunately drained my savings to survive. Those savings were for my future tuition. While this has made things more complicated and strive to keep moving forward and seek any additional help when it's offered. So, in addition to federal loans to help cover my $55k tuition for my BSN program, I am also seeking and applying to numerous scholarships to aid my burden. I am currently waiting for my financial aid offer to come through my school all the meanwhile my school program has already started. Due to the rigorous program I have cut my working hours down to part time as recommended by my school further hindering my income. The first installment of tuition is already due and I would graciously apply this $1000 immediately to my schooling. $1000 is not a small sum of money although some would say differently when stacked against the mountain of schooling debt some accumulate. But I know that any help really does make a difference, and those who need it the most are typically the most appreciative.

I am a 29 year old female that just started my first stepping stone to becoming a Nurse. Let me tell you how I got started. Growing up my father was not only my hero, but a literal one. Watching my Firefighter father of 30+ years make that big of a difference in people lives inspired me to do the same. So,I started as an EMT to test the waters, so to speak, in the medical world. And I was hooked. But soon after working for 3 years as an EMT I knew I wanted to be able to do more and help more people. I knew to do that I ultimately needed to advance my education and my scope of practice. For the past 2 years I have been working and going to school with aspirations to apply to nursing school. Through perseverance, patience and the encouragement of my father I was finally accepted into my BSN program in March of 2022. To make things even sweeter, yesterday was my first day of Nursing School. This next amazing chapter of my life is now underway. I strive to emulate my father and the many other healthcare providers I have encountered. From the compassion to the care, to the above and beyond characteristics I have witnessed. I know that I have a great foundation to build upon to become a great nurse that hopefully one day someone may look upon me and feel the same way. I have many ideas of where this new career will take me, but ultimately I aspire to work as a Burn Care Nurse at a Level I trauma center. When I was younger my father took me to volunteer at San Diego ‘Burn Run’ and San Diego ‘Camp Beyond the Scars’. Interacting with children and adults who had been seriously burned during their life time helped shape the kind of nurse I want to be. Essentially coming full circle to help people like the ones my dad has saved in his life time. My compassion for others and love of science make me perfect for this field. I cannot wait to help make a positive difference in others lives in this world. I look forward to this rewarding career and cannot wait to begin.

I believe that learning from an early age about credit scores and all the factors that contribute to the scores, are often overlooked, yet very important. Lack of education on this subject may lead to severe financial hardships that could have possibly been prevented. There seems to be a large amount of stigma around credit cards, but when used in a responsible manner, they can help build your credit history and credit score. In addition checking your credit report annually to review what is out there and associated with your name can save some headaches when it does come to large purchases or financial commitments. It will give you time to amend any inconsistencies. To add, knowing what your debt to income ratio is can help prepare you for financial decisions. Such as purchasing a house, a vehicle, or even taking out a large private line of credit. Knowing how all these factors play off of one another one can make informed decisions about their finances and can allow for more opportunities in the future.

Carrying on my Fathers Legacy Seeing my father working as a firefighter ignited a spark in me to explore the first responder/emergency services realm. Growing up he was not only my hero but countless others. During the large wildfires in southern California in the early 2000’s I distinctly remember some previous neighbors lining the street with signs and gracious words thanking my father for saving their house. Watching my father make that big of a difference in their lives inspired me to make a positive impact as well. I started as an EMT to test the waters, so to speak, in the medical world and was hooked. But after working for 3 years as an EMT I knew I wanted to be able to do more and help more people. I knew to do that I ultimately needed to advance my education and my scope of practice. For the past 2 years I have been working and going to school with aspirations to apply to nursing school. Through perseverance, patience and the encouragement of my father I was finally accepted into my BSN program in March of 2022. To make things even sweeter, yesterday was my first day of Nursing School. This next amazing chapter of my life is now underway. I strive to emulate my father and the many other healthcare providers I have encountered. From the compassion to the care, to the above and beyond characteristics I have witnessed. I know that I have a great foundation to build upon to become a great nurse that hopefully one day someone may look upon me and feel the same way. I have many ideas of where this new career will take me, but ultimately I aspire to work as a Burn Care Nurse at a Level I trauma center. When I was younger my father took me to volunteer at San Diego ‘Burn Run’ and San Diego ‘Camp Beyond the Scars’. Interacting with children and adults who had been seriously burned during their life time helped shape the kind of nurse I want to be. Essentially coming full circle to help people like the ones my dad has saved in his life time. My compassion for others and love of science make me perfect for this field. I cannot wait to help make a difference in others lives.I look forward to this rewarding career and cannot wait to begin.

Carrying on my Fathers Legacy Seeing my father working as a firefighter ignited a spark in me to explore the first responder/emergency services realm. Growing up he was not only my hero but countless others. During the large wildfires in southern California in the early 2000’s I distinctly remember some previous neighbors lining the street with signs and gracious words thanking my father for saving their house. Watching my father make that big of a difference in their lives inspired me to do the same. I started as an EMT to test the waters, so to speak, in the medical world and was hooked. But after working for 3 years as an EMT I knew I wanted to be able to do more and help more people. I knew to do that I ultimately needed to advance my education and my scope of practice. To do that Nursing School was the perfect route. For the past 2 years I have been working full time and going to school with aspirations to apply to nursing school. Through perseverance, patience and the encouragement of my father I was finally accepted into my BSN program in March of 2022. To make things even sweeter, yesterday was my first day of Nursing School. This next amazing chapter of my life is now underway. I strive to emulate my father and the many other healthcare providers I have encountered. From the compassion to the care, to the above and beyond characteristics I have witnessed. Serving the community and educating others were two things I hold to dearly. I know that I have a great foundation to build upon to become a great nurse that hopefully one day someone may look upon me and feel the same way. I have many ideas of where this new career will take me, but ultimately I aspire to work as a Burn Care Nurse at a Level I trauma center. When I was younger my father took me to volunteer at San Diego ‘Burn Run’ and San Diego ‘Camp Beyond the Scars’. Interacting with children and adults who had been seriously burned during their life time helped shape the kind of nurse I want to be. Essentially coming full circle to help people like the ones my dad has saved in his life time. My compassion for others and love of science make me perfect for this field. I cannot wait to help make a difference in others lives. I look forward to this rewarding career and cannot wait to begin.