I always wonder how it would be living in a two-parent household, I used to see some of my friends and get jealous about not having that type of life. However, as I started getting older I no longer felt that way. My mom was always there for me and there wasn't anything that she wouldn't do for me. My mom always put me first in front of anything. It was hard because it was a struggle for my mom, she was always working and after work running around picking me up and taking me to my sports. She made a lot of sacrifices to be able to provide for me. She put her life on hold for me, just to be there, take care of me and provide for me. I learned a lot watching how my mother took care of me and always helped me stay on the straight and narrow path. To be honest it wasn't easy because when I was younger my mother was always in the school because I couldn't stay still. I started getting older and learning more and started to stay in my seat and out of trouble. Just being me and mom at home made me feel lonely at times jealous that I didn't have two parents to raise me as some of my friends did. As I got older I admired my mom for working so hard and taking care of me and it made me look at things differently. I started working differently at school and started making it my number one priority. So I think coming from a single household can be lonely at times but always comes with a bonus, you get all the attention from your parent. You learn to be stronger and work harder for what you want to do in your life. So even though at times it had bothered me for not having a two-parent household I think it made me who I am today. I have come a long way and I will not give up on my dreams and goals in my life. I will be successful and follow my dreams and then I will be able to help my mother retire and give back to her for all she has done in my life. So coming from a single household has both its advantages and disadvantages but the bottom line is what you do with it and make with it. I will use what I learn from my mother growing up to help other kids in the same situation. Just because you come from a single household doesn't mean that you can't be successful at all, so I want to make sure to show them that. So I want to make a difference in not one but many other people's lives. I have seen some of my friends fall off track because they didn't have a supportive parent so I don't want that to happen to other people. So everything I work hard to achieve in my life I want to be able to share it with others so that they will succeed. Coming from a single-parent household doesn't mean failure but a chance to prove the world wrong.

Last year around this time I was so excited in preparation of me leaving home and going away to North Carolina State University in Raleigh, NC. I have graduated with my Associate Degree from Northampton Community College and was transferring this September to NCSU to continue my education to I get my Bachelor’s Degree. You see what was supposed to be an exciting day for me didn’t exactly go that way. On August 16 I got in my vehicle with all my belongings in preparation for move in day which was on August 17. My mother, sister and niece were in my mother’s car to drive down there too to help me move in and settle in. So, I started driving down to North Carolina and my mother was like 20 minutes behind me because they left a little later. I was on the highway driving not even two hours in to our trip I heard a loud pop in the car and smoke starting coming into the vehicle. I started trying to pull the car over to the side of the highway and it had become very stiff. I manage to pull over a little and jumped out of the vehicle. I immediately called my mother to tell her what was happening and I started walking back towards the car to open the door and the car was engulfed in flames. My mother told me to call the firemen and cops immediately. Also in the highway was a lady that saw what was happening and she pulled over to try to assist me. Unfortunately, with the car being engulfed in flames I wasn’t able to get back in the car to get any of my belongings out at all. The cops arrived to the scene and to be honest I don’t remember how long it took them to arrive. However, it took the firemen forever to arrive at the scene. After going over everything with the police I just stood there watching everything that I worked so hard for during the Summer continue to burn right in front of my eyes. I just couldn’t believe that a day that started off has an exciting day turn into a nightmare. I have never in my life been so devasted ever before. I was so overwhelmed and didn’t know what to do, whether to turn back and go home and forget about the whole move in day for school. I continue to sit on the side of the road while the firemen worked on putting out the fire in my car and waiting for my mother as well. Also due to the fire they had to shut down some of the lanes on the road so my mother and sister were having a hard time getting to me. It took them forever to get to me. They called me and I told me that they were in a stand still because of the vehicles in front of them, but they could see the firetruck etc. So, the cop took my phone and told my mother and sister for them to drive on the side where the railing is at so that they can get through. My mother and sister were finally able to get to me. It was devasting and my mom was in tears shaking her head in disbelieve when she saw how the vehicle was completely burnt out, from the front and all the way to the back and even all the tires. The cop gave my mother his business card and the card for tow truck as well

My career goals all revolve around my passion and love for sports. I have always been very active in my life since a young age so my mom tells me. I was a little bit too active that I couldn't sit still in a classroom. Once I started going to school the teachers would say that I was very intelligent but couldn’t stay still and I would cause disturbance in the classroom. I spent a lot of time in the corner when I couldn’t follow directions. My mother decided to sign me up for sports and that is where my passion for sports started. I was very competitive and played basketball and football. Not only did I play sports but then I would be home watching all kinds of sports from basketball, football and baseball. My mom would tell everyone I was like a walking encyclopedia when it came to sports. I would be able to carry on full-blown a conversation with older adults about sports before I was even born. They would look at me and ask me how did I know all of that stuff. Then when I got to high school, I was devasted that I didn’t make the basketball team and all the kids I grew up with and play ball with made the team. My grades started to go down because I was upset about it. Then I realize I needed to get focus and work on my education so that I could graduate and go to college. So, as I got older, I realized that I wanted to pursue a career in something that I love and would be great at and that is why I decided to go after a career in Sports Management. I decided that I wanted to be a sports recruiter and recruit all the right candidates for basketball or football for colleges and the NBA or NFL. I would always make sure that I wouldn’t miss the NBA draft. I would sit there and watched when they did the drafts and I would shake my head at some of their decisions and say out loud to myself I know I can do a lot better than that. The more I watched NBA and NFL games the more my love and passion grew. There isn’t anything out there that I would love to do more than be in the world of basketball and football. That is where my heart is and I will follow my dream. I know that once I get my foot in the door, I will be very successful at it and anyone that would hire me would be so grateful to have me on their side. As I am continuing my education, I am getting more and more excited about what lies ahead in my future. I know what I know and how I am going to excel in my position in the world of sports.

My career goals all revolve around my passion and love for sports. I have always been very active in my life since a young age so my mom tells me. I was a little bit too active that I couldn't sit still in a classroom. Once I started going to school the teachers would say that I was very intelligent but couldn’t stay still and I would cause disturbance in the classroom. I spent a lot of time in the corner when I couldn’t follow directions. My mother decided to sign me up for sports and that is where my passion for sports started. I was very competitive and played basketball and football. Not only did I play sports but then I would be home watching all kinds of sports from basketball, football and baseball. My mom would tell everyone I was like a walking encyclopedia when it came to sports. I would be able to carry on full-blown a conversation with older adults about sports before I was even born. They would look at me and ask me how did I know all of that stuff. Then when I got to high school, I was devasted that I didn’t make the basketball team and all the kids I grew up with and play ball with made the team. My grades started to go down because I was upset about it. Then I realize I needed to get focus and work on my education so that I could graduate and go to college. So, as I got older, I realized that I wanted to pursue a career in something that I love and would be great at and that is why I decided to go after a career in Sports Management. I decided that I wanted to be a sports recruiter and recruit all the right candidates for basketball or football for colleges and the NBA or NFL. I would always make sure that I wouldn’t miss the NBA draft. I would sit there and watched when they did the drafts and I would shake my head at some of their decisions and say out loud to myself I know I can do a lot better than that. The more I watched NBA and NFL games the more my love and passion grew. There isn’t anything out there that I would love to do more than be in the world of basketball and football. That is where my heart is and I will follow my dream. I know that once I get my foot in the door, I will be very successful at it and anyone that would hire me would be so grateful to have me on their side. As I am continuing my education, I am getting more and more excited about what lies ahead in my future. I know what I know and how I am going to excel in my position in the world of sports. The more I think about it the more excited I get. I can't wait to finish my education and get my degree so I can show the world the knowledge I have in the world of sports. Whether it’s the NFL or NBA organization whichever ones that hires me to do their recruiting is going to be very happy to have me in their organization.

I always wonder how it would be living in a two-parent household, I used to see some of my friends and get jealous about not having that type of life. However, as I started getting older, I no longer felt that way. My mom was always there for me and there wasn't anything that she wouldn't do for me. My mom always put me first in front of anything. It was hard because it was a struggle for my mom, she was always working and after work running around picking me up and taking me to my sports. She made a lot of sacrifices to be able to provide for me. She put her life on hold for me, just to be there, take care of me and provide for me. I learned a lot watching how my mother took care of me and always helped me stay on the straight and narrow path. To be honest it wasn't easy because when I was younger my mother was always in the school because I couldn't stay still. I started getting older and learning more and started to stay in my seat and out of trouble. Just being me and mom at home made me feel lonely at times and jealous that I didn't have two parents to raise me as some of my friends did. As I got older, I admired my mom for working so hard and taking care of me and it made me look at things differently. I started working differently at school and started making it my number one priority. So I think coming from a single household can be lonely at times but always comes with a bonus, you get all the attention from your mom. You learn to be stronger and work harder for what you want to do in your life. So even though at times it had bothered me for not having a two-parent household I think it made me who I am today. I have come a long way and I will not give up on my dreams and goals in my life. I will be successful and follow my dreams and then I will be able to help my mother retire and give back to her for all she has done in my life. So coming from a single household has both its advantages and disadvantages but the bottom line is what you do with it and make with it.

I always wonder how it would be living in a two-parent household, I used to see some of my friends and get jealous about not having that type of life. However, as I started getting older, I no longer felt that way. My mom was always there for me and there wasn't anything that she wouldn't do for me. My mom always put me first in front of anything. It was hard because it was a struggle for my mom, she was always working and after work running around picking me up and taking me to my sports. She made a lot of sacrifices to be able to provide for me. She put her life on hold for me, just to be there, take care of me and provide for me. I learned a lot watching how my mother took care of me and always helped me stay on the straight and narrow path. To be honest it wasn't easy because when I was younger my mother was always in the school because I couldn't stay still. I started getting older and learning more and started to stay in my seat and out of trouble. Just being me and mom at home made me feel lonely at times and jealous that I didn't have two parents to raise me as some of my friends did. As I got older, I admired my mom for working so hard and taking care of me and it made me look at things differently. I started working differently at school and started making it my number one priority. So I think coming from a single household can be lonely at times but always comes with a bonus, you get all the attention from your mom. You learn to be stronger and work harder for what you want to do in your life. So even though at times it had bothered me for not having a two-parent household I think it made me who I am today. I have come a long way and I will not give up on my dreams and goals in my life. I will be successful and follow my dreams and then I will be able to help my mother retire and give back to her for all she has done in my life. So coming from a single household has both its advantages and disadvantages but the bottom line is what you do with it and make with it.

My career goals all revolve around my passion and love for sports. I have always been very active in my life since a young age so my mom tells me. I was a little bit too active that I couldn't sit still in a classroom. Once I started going to school the teachers would say that I was very intelligent but couldn’t stay still and I would cause disturbance in the classroom. I spent a lot of time in the corner when I couldn’t follow directions. My mother decided to sign me up for sports and that is where my passion for sports started. I was very competitive and played basketball and football. Not only did I play sports but then I would be home watching all kinds of sports from basketball, football and baseball. My mom would tell everyone I was like a walking encyclopedia when it came to sports. I would be able to carry on full-blown a conversation with older adults about sports before I was even born. They would look at me and ask me how did I know all of that stuff. Then when I got to high school, I was devasted that I didn’t make the basketball team and all the kids I grew up with and play ball with made the team. My grades started to go down because I was upset about it. Then I realize I needed to get focus and work on my education so that I could graduate and go to college. So, as I got older, I realized that I wanted to pursue a career in something that I love and would be great at and that is why I decided to go after a career in Sports Management. I decided that I wanted to be a sports recruiter and recruit all the right candidates for basketball or football for colleges and the NBA or NFL. I would always make sure that I wouldn’t miss the NBA draft. I would sit there and watched when they did the drafts and I would shake my head at some of their decisions and say out loud to myself I know I can do a lot better than that. The more I watched NBA and NFL games the more my love and passion grew. There isn’t anything out there that I would love to do more than be in the world of basketball and football. That is where my heart is and I will follow my dream. I know that once I get my foot in the door, I will be very successful at it and anyone that would hire me would be so grateful to have me on their side. As I am continuing my education, I am getting more and more excited about what lies ahead in my future. I know what I know and how I am going to excel in my position in the world of sports. The more I think about it the more excited I get. I can't wait to finish my education and get my degree so I can show the world the knowledge I have in the world of sports. Whether it’s the NFL or NBA organization whichever ones that hires me to do their recruiting is going to be very happy to have me in their organization.

My career goals all revolve around my passion and love for sports. I have always been very active in my life since a young age so my mom tells me. I was a little bit too active that I couldn't sit still in a classroom. Once I started going to school the teachers would say that I was very intelligent but couldn’t stay still and I would cause disturbance in the classroom. I spent a lot of time in the corner when I couldn’t follow directions. My mother decided to sign me up for sports and that is where my passion for sports started. I was very competitive and played basketball and football. Not only did I play sports but then I would be home watching all kinds of sports from basketball, football and baseball. My mom would tell everyone I was like a walking encyclopedia when it came to sports. I would be able to carry on full-blown a conversation with older adults about sports before I was even born. They would look at me and ask me how did I know all of that stuff. Then when I got to high school, I was devasted that I didn’t make the basketball team and all the kids I grew up with and play ball with made the team. My grades started to go down because I was upset about it. Then I realize I needed to get focus and work on my education so that I could graduate and go to college. So, as I got older, I realized that I wanted to pursue a career in something that I love and would be great at and that is why I decided to go after a career in Sports Management. I decided that I wanted to be a sports recruiter and recruit all the right candidates for basketball or football for colleges and the NBA or NFL. I would always make sure that I wouldn’t miss the NBA draft. I would sit there and watched when they did the drafts and I would shake my head at some of their decisions and say out loud to myself I know I can do a lot better than that. The more I watched NBA and NFL games the more my love and passion grew. There isn’t anything out there that I would love to do more than be in the world of basketball and football. That is where my heart is and I will follow my dream. I know that once I get my foot in the door, I will be very successful at it and anyone that would hire me would be so grateful to have me on their side. As I am continuing my education, I am getting more and more excited about what lies ahead in my future. I know what I know and how I am going to excel in my position in the world of sports. The more I think about it the more excited I get. I can't wait to finish my education and get my degree so I can show the world the knowledge I have in the world of sports. Whether it’s the NFL or NBA organization whichever ones that hires me to do their recruiting is going to be very happy to have me in their organization. So any assistance I can get to fulfill my goals and dreams would be a blessing.

My career goals all revolve around my passion and love for sports. I have always been very active in my life since a young age so my mom tells me. I was a little bit too active that I couldn't sit still in a classroom. Once I started going to school the teachers would say that I was very intelligent but couldn’t stay still and I would cause disturbance in the classroom. I spent a lot of time in the corner when I couldn’t follow directions. My mother decided to sign me up for sports and that is where my passion for sports started. I was very competitive and played basketball and football. Not only did I play sports but then I would be home watching all kinds of sports from basketball, football and baseball. My mom would tell everyone I was like a walking encyclopedia when it came to sports. I would be able to carry on full-blown a conversation with older adults about sports before I was even born. They would look at me and ask me how did I know all of that stuff. Then when I got to high school, I was devasted that I didn’t make the basketball team and all the kids I grew up with and play ball with made the team. My grades started to go down because I was upset about it. Then I realize I needed to get focus and work on my education so that I could graduate and go to college. So, as I got older, I realized that I wanted to pursue a career in something that I love and would be great at and that is why I decided to go after a career in Sports Management. I decided that I wanted to be a sports recruiter and recruit all the right candidates for basketball or football for colleges and the NBA or NFL. I would always make sure that I wouldn’t miss the NBA draft. I would sit there and watched when they did the drafts and I would shake my head at some of their decisions and say out loud to myself I know I can do a lot better than that. The more I watched NBA and NFL games the more my love and passion grew. There isn’t anything out there that I would love to do more than be in the world of basketball and football. That is where my heart is and I will follow my dream. I know that once I get my foot in the door, I will be very successful at it and anyone that would hire me would be so grateful to have me on their side. As I am continuing my education, I am getting more and more excited about what lies ahead in my future. I know what I know and how I am going to excel in my position in the world of sports. The more I think about it the more excited I get. I can't wait to finish my education and get my degree so I can show the world the knowledge I have in the world of sports. Whether it’s the NFL or NBA organization whichever ones that hires me to do their recruiting is going to be very happy to have me in their organization.

My career goals all revolve around my passion and love for sports. I have always been very active in my life since a young age so my mom tells me. I was a little bit too active that I couldn't sit still in a classroom. Once I started going to school the teachers would say that I was very intelligent but couldn’t stay still and I would cause disturbance in the classroom. I spent a lot of time in the corner when I couldn’t follow directions. My mother decided to sign me up for sports and that is where my passion for sports started. I was very competitive and played basketball and football. Not only did I play sports but then I would be home watching all kinds of sports from basketball, football and baseball. My mom would tell everyone I was like a walking encyclopedia when it came to sports. I would be able to carry on full-blown a conversation with older adults about sports before I was even born. They would look at me and ask me how did I know all of that stuff. Then when I got to high school, I was devasted that I didn’t make the basketball team and all the kids I grew up with and play ball with made the team. My grades started to go down because I was upset about it. Then I realize I needed to get focus and work on my education so that I could graduate and go to college. So, as I got older, I realized that I wanted to pursue a career in something that I love and would be great at and that is why I decided to go after a career in Sports Management. I decided that I wanted to be a sports recruiter and recruit all the right candidates for basketball or football for colleges and the NBA or NFL. I would always make sure that I wouldn’t miss the NBA draft. I would sit there and watched when they did the drafts and I would shake my head at some of their decisions and say out loud to myself I know I can do a lot better than that. The more I watched NBA and NFL games the more my love and passion grew. There isn’t anything out there that I would love to do more than be in the world of basketball and football. That is where my heart is and I will follow my dream. I know that once I get my foot in the door, I will be very successful at it and anyone that would hire me would be so grateful to have me on their side. As I am continuing my education, I am getting more and more excited about what lies ahead in my future. I know what I know and how I am going to excel in my position in the world of sports. The more I think about it the more excited I get. I can't wait to finish my education and get my degree so I can show the world the knowledge I have in the world of sports. Whether it’s the NFL or NBA organization whichever ones that hires me to do their recruiting is going to be very happy to have me in their organization. I feel with the knowledge I have I can definitely make an impact in the sports world.

My career goals all revolve around my passion and love for sports. I have always been very active in my life since a young age so my mom tells me. I was a little bit too active that I couldn't sit still in a classroom. Once I started going to school the teachers would say that I was very intelligent but couldn’t stay still and I would cause disturbance in the classroom. I spent a lot of time in the corner when I couldn’t follow directions. My mother decided to sign me up for sports and that is where my passion for sports started. I was very competitive and played basketball and football. Not only did I play sports but then I would be home watching all kinds of sports from basketball, football and baseball. My mom would tell everyone I was like a walking encyclopedia when it came to sports. I would be able to carry on full-blown a conversation with older adults about sports before I was even born. They would look at me and ask me how did I know all of that stuff. Then when I got to high school, I was devasted that I didn’t make the basketball team and all the kids I grew up with and play ball with made the team. My grades started to go down because I was upset about it. Then I realize I needed to get focus and work on my education so that I could graduate and go to college. So, as I got older, I realized that I wanted to pursue a career in something that I love and would be great at and that is why I decided to go after a career in Sports Management. I decided that I wanted to be a sports recruiter and recruit all the right candidates for basketball or football for colleges and the NBA or NFL. I would always make sure that I wouldn’t miss the NBA draft. I would sit there and watched when they did the drafts and I would shake my head at some of their decisions and say out loud to myself I know I can do a lot better than that. The more I watched NBA and NFL games the more my love and passion grew. There isn’t anything out there that I would love to do more than be in the world of basketball and football. That is where my heart is and I will follow my dream. I know that once I get my foot in the door, I will be very successful at it and anyone that would hire me would be so grateful to have me on their side. As I am continuing my education, I am getting more and more excited about what lies ahead in my future. I know what I know and how I am going to excel in my position in the world of sports. The more I think about it the more excited I get. I can't wait to finish my education and get my degree so I can show the world the knowledge I have in the world of sports. Whether it’s the NFL or NBA organization whichever ones that hires me to do their recruiting is going to be very happy to have me in their organization.

My career goals all revolve around my passion and love for sports. I have always been very active in my life since a young age so my mom tells me. I was a little bit too active that I couldn't sit still in a classroom. Once I started going to school the teachers would say that I was very intelligent but couldn’t stay still and I would cause disturbance in the classroom. I spent a lot of time in the corner when I couldn’t follow directions. My mother decided to sign me up for sports and that is where my passion for sports started. I was very competitive and played basketball and football. Not only did I play sports but then I would be home watching all kinds of sports from basketball, football and baseball. My mom would tell everyone I was like a walking encyclopedia when it came to sports. I would be able to carry on full-blown a conversation with older adults about sports before I was even born. They would look at me and ask me how did I know all of that stuff. Then when I got to high school, I was devasted that I didn’t make the basketball team and all the kids I grew up with and play ball with made the team. My grades started to go down because I was upset about it. Then I realize I needed to get focus and work on my education so that I could graduate and go to college. So, as I got older, I realized that I wanted to pursue a career in something that I love and would be great at and that is why I decided to go after a career in Sports Management. I decided that I wanted to be a sports recruiter and recruit all the right candidates for basketball or football for colleges and the NBA or NFL. I would always make sure that I wouldn’t miss the NBA draft. I would sit there and watched when they did the drafts and I would shake my head at some of their decisions and say out loud to myself I know I can do a lot better than that. The more I watched NBA and NFL games the more my love and passion grew. There isn’t anything out there that I would love to do more than be in the world of basketball and football. That is where my heart is and I will follow my dream. I know that once I get my foot in the door, I will be very successful at it and anyone that would hire me would be so grateful to have me on their side. As I am continuing my education, I am getting more and more excited about what lies ahead in my future. I know what I know and how I am going to excel in my position in the world of sports. The more I think about it the more excited I get. I can't wait to finish my education and get my degree so I can show the world the knowledge I have in the world of sports. Whether it’s the NFL or NBA organization whichever ones that hires me to do their recruiting is going to be very happy to have me in their organization.

My career goals all revolve around my passion and love for sports. I have always been very active in my life since a young age so my mom tells me. I was a little bit too active that I couldn't sit still in a classroom. Once I started going to school the teachers would say that I was very intelligent but couldn’t stay still and I would cause disturbance in the classroom. I spent a lot of time in the corner when I couldn’t follow directions. My mother decided to sign me up for sports and that is where my passion for sports started. I was very competitive and played basketball and football. Not only did I play sports but then I would be home watching all kinds of sports from basketball, football and baseball. My mom would tell everyone I was like a walking encyclopedia when it came to sports. I would be able to carry on full-blown a conversation with older adults about sports before I was even born. They would look at me and ask me how did I know all of that stuff. Then when I got to high school, I was devasted that I didn’t make the basketball team and all the kids I grew up with and play ball with made the team. My grades started to go down because I was upset about it. Then I realize I needed to get focus and work on my education so that I could graduate and go to college. So, as I got older, I realized that I wanted to pursue a career in something that I love and would be great at and that is why I decided to go after a career in Sports Management. I decided that I wanted to be a sports recruiter and recruit all the right candidates for basketball or football for colleges and the NBA or NFL. I would always make sure that I wouldn’t miss the NBA draft. I would sit there and watched when they did the drafts and I would shake my head at some of their decisions and say out loud to myself I know I can do a lot better than that. The more I watched NBA and NFL games the more my love and passion grew. There isn’t anything out there that I would love to do more than be in the world of basketball and football. That is where my heart is and I will follow my dream. I know that once I get my foot in the door, I will be very successful at it and anyone that would hire me would be so grateful to have me on their side. As I am continuing my education, I am getting more and more excited about what lies ahead in my future. I know what I know and how I am going to excel in my position in the world of sports. The more I think about it the more excited I get. I can't wait to finish my education and get my degree so I can show the world the knowledge I have in the world of sports. Whether it’s the NFL or NBA organization whichever ones that hires me to do their recruiting is going to be very happy to have me in their organization.

So on August 16 what was supposed to be an exciting day for me didn’t exactly go that way. I got in my vehicle with all my belongings in preparation for move-in day which was on August 17. My mother, sister and niece were in my mother’s car to drive down there too to help me move in and get settled in. So, I started driving down to North Carolina and my mother was like 20 minutes behind me because they left a little later. As I was driving on the highway not even two hours into my trip I heard a loud pop in the car and smoke started coming into the vehicle. I started trying to pull the car over to the side of the highway and it had become very stiff. I managed to pull over a little and jumped out of the vehicle. I immediately called my mother to tell her what was happening and I started walking back towards the car to open the door and the car was engulfed in flames. My mother told me to call the cops/firemen immediately. Also on the highway was a lady that saw what was happening and she pulled over to try to assist me. Unfortunately, with the car being engulfed in flames I wasn’t able to get back in the car to get any of my belongings out at all. The cops arrived at the scene and to be honest I don’t remember how long it took them to arrive. However, it took the firemen forever to arrive at the scene. After going over everything with the police I just stood there watching everything that I worked so hard for during the Summer continue to burn right in front of my eyes. I just couldn’t believe that a day that started as an exciting day turned into a nightmare. I have never in my life been so devasted ever before. I was so overwhelmed and didn’t know what to do, whether to turn back and go home and forget about the whole move-in day for school or what. I continued to sit on the side of the road while the firemen worked on putting out the fire in my car and waiting for my mother as well. Also due to the fire they had to shut down some of the lanes on the road so my mother was having a hard time getting to me. It took them forever to get to me. She called me and told me that they were at a standstill because of the vehicles in front of them, but they could see the firetruck etc. So, the cop took my phone and told my mother to drive on the ride etc the road on the while sidelines to get through. My mother and sister were finally able to get to me. My mom was in tears shaking her head in disbelief when she saw how the car totally burnt down from front to back. We went to the school with no supplies however when the school found out they helped with gift cards to get some items replaced. After I saw all the support the school offered I realized I made the right decision to come to NCSU. I would always tell people my story and tell them to stand strong and never give up and follow your plans and dreams.

My career goals all revolve around my passion and love for sports. I have always been very active in my life since a young age so my mom tells me. I was a little bit too active that I couldn't sit still in a classroom. Once I started going to school the teachers would say that I was very intelligent but couldn’t stay still and I would cause disturbance in the classroom. I spent a lot of time in the corner when I couldn’t follow directions. My mother decided to sign me up for sports and that is where my passion for sports started. I was very competitive and played basketball and football. Not only did I play sports but then I would be home watching all kinds of sports from basketball, football and baseball. My mom would tell everyone I was like a walking encyclopedia when it came to sports. I would be able to carry on full-blown a conversation with older adults about sports before I was even born. They would look at me and ask me how did I know all of that stuff. Then when I got to high school, I was devasted that I didn’t make the basketball team and all the kids I grew up with and play ball with made the team. My grades started to go down because I was upset about it. Then I realize I needed to get focus and work on my education so that I could graduate and go to college. So, as I got older, I realized that I wanted to pursue a career in something that I love and would be great at and that is why I decided to go after a career in Sports Management. I decided that I wanted to be a sports recruiter and recruit all the right candidates for basketball or football for colleges and the NBA or NFL. I would always make sure that I wouldn’t miss the NBA draft. I would sit there and watched when they did the drafts and I would shake my head at some of their decisions and say out loud to myself I know I can do a lot better than that. The more I watched NBA and NFL games the more my love and passion grew. There isn’t anything out there that I would love to do more than be in the world of basketball and football. That is where my heart is and I will follow my dream. I know that once I get my foot in the door, I will be very successful at it and anyone that would hire me would be so grateful to have me on their side. As I am continuing my education, I am getting more and more excited about what lies ahead in my future. I know what I know and how I am going to excel in my position in the world of sports. The more I think about it the more excited I get. I can't wait to finish my education and get my degree so I can show the world the knowledge I have in the world of sports. Whether it’s the NFL or NBA organization whichever ones that hires me to do their recruiting is going to be very happy to have me in their organization.

My career goals all revolve around my passion and love for sports. I have always been very active in my life since a young age so my mom tells me. I was a little bit too active that I couldn't sit still in a classroom. Once I started going to school the teachers would say that I was very intelligent but couldn’t stay still and I would cause disturbance in the classroom. I spent a lot of time in the corner when I couldn’t follow directions. My mother decided to sign me up for sports and that is where my passion for sports started. I was very competitive and played basketball and football. Not only did I play sports but then I would be home watching all kinds of sports from basketball, football and baseball. My mom would tell everyone I was like a walking encyclopedia when it came to sports. I would be able to carry on full-blown a conversation with older adults about sports before I was even born. They would look at me and ask me how did I know all of that stuff. Then when I got to high school, I was devasted that I didn’t make the basketball team and all the kids I grew up with and play ball with made the team. My grades started to go down because I was upset about it. Then I realize I needed to get focus and work on my education so that I could graduate and go to college. So, as I got older, I realized that I wanted to pursue a career in something that I love and would be great at and that is why I decided to go after a career in Sports Management. I decided that I wanted to be a sports recruiter and recruit all the right candidates for basketball or football for colleges and the NBA or NFL. I would always make sure that I wouldn’t miss the NBA draft. I would sit there and watched when they did the drafts and I would shake my head at some of their decisions and say out loud to myself I know I can do a lot better than that. The more I watched NBA and NFL games the more my love and passion grew. There isn’t anything out there that I would love to do more than be in the world of basketball and football. That is where my heart is and I will follow my dream. I know that once I get my foot in the door, I will be very successful at it and anyone that would hire me would be so grateful to have me on their side. As I am continuing my education, I am getting more and more excited about what lies ahead in my future. I know what I know and how I am going to excel in my position in the world of sports. The more I think about it the more excited I get. I can't wait to finish my education and get my degree so I can show the world the knowledge I have in the world of sports. Whether it’s the NFL or NBA organization whichever ones that hires me to do their recruiting is going to be very happy to have me in their organization.

My dreams and career goals all revolve around my passion and love for sports. I have always been very active in my life since a young age so my mom tells me. I was a little bit too active that I couldn't sit still in a classroom. Once I started going to school the teachers would say that I was very intelligent but couldn’t stay still and I would cause disturbance in the classroom. I spent a lot of time in the corner when I couldn’t follow directions. My mother decided to sign me up for sports and that is where my passion for sports started. I was very competitive and played basketball and football. Not only did I play sports but then I would be home watching all kinds of sports from basketball, football and baseball. My mom would tell everyone I was like a walking encyclopedia when it came to sports. I would be able to carry on full-blown a conversation with older adults about sports before I was even born. They would look at me and ask me how did I know all of that stuff. Then when I got to high school, I was devasted that I didn’t make the basketball team and all the kids I grew up with and play ball with made the team. My grades started to go down because I was upset about it. Then I realize I needed to get focus and work on my education so that I could graduate and go to college. So, as I got older, I realized that I wanted to pursue a career in something that I love and would be great at and that is why I decided to go after a career in Sports Management. I decided that I wanted to be a sports recruiter and recruit all the right candidates for basketball or football for colleges and the NBA or NFL. I would always make sure that I wouldn’t miss the NBA draft. I would sit there and watched when they did the drafts and I would shake my head at some of their decisions and say out loud to myself I know I can do a lot better than that. The more I watched NBA and NFL games the more my love and passion grew. There isn’t anything out there that I would love to do more than be in the world of basketball and football. That is where my heart is and I will follow my dream. I know that once I get my foot in the door, I will be very successful at it and anyone that would hire me would be so grateful to have me on their side. As I am continuing my education, I am getting more and more excited about what lies ahead in my future. I know what I know and how I am going to excel in my position in the world of sports. The more I think about it the more excited I get. I can't wait to finish my education and get my degree so I can show the world the knowledge I have in the world of sports. Whether it’s the NFL or NBA organization whichever ones that hires me to do their recruiting is going to be very happy to have me in their organization.

I want to tell you a little bit about my mother, she is an amazing mother. You see my mother raised me on her own and basically put her life on hold for me. I love my mother dearly and to be honest I dont know how she raised me on her own because when I was young I sure wasnt easy to deal with. I think about how my mom was always working so hard to take care of me and make ends meet. She was always running around looking to put me into sports or some other recreation activity where I would have an opportunity to learn something new and grow. You see she only wanted whats best for me and she knew I needed to be involve in something because I was so active and couldnt sit still for too long. She worked so hard to make sure she had everything I needed for school, and all these extra currilum activities. She wanted me to be well rounded and able to contribute to society. Everything she did was to give me a chance to suceed in whatever I decided to pursue in my life. My mother new that I needed to be involve to stay out of trouble and to grow up to be successful in life. My mother work so hard, she didn't have any life outside of work and taking care of me. Its because of all she did for me that I graduate from high school, worked part time , got my Associate degree and now transfer to another college to continue my education to get my bachelors degree. It was her work in me that I have accomplish so much in my life so far. She has taught me great work ethic.

My career goals all revolve around my passion and love for sports. I have always been very active in my life since a young age so my mom tells me. I was a little bit too active that I couldn't sit still in a classroom. So my mother decided to sign me up for sports and that is where my passion for sports started. I was very competitive and played basketball and football. Not only did I play sports but then I would be home watching all kinds of sports from basketball, football and baseball. My mom would tell everyone I was like a walking encyclopedia when it came to sports. I would be able to carry on full-blown a conversation with older adults about sports before I was even born. They would look at me and ask me how did I know all of that stuff. So As I got older, I realized that I wanted to pursue a career in something that I love and would be great at and that is why I decided to go after a career in Sports Management. So I decided that I wanted to be a sports recruiter and recruit all the right candidates for basketball or football for colleges and the NBA or NFL. Have I sat and watched when they did the drafts and I would shake my head at some of their decisions and say I know I can do a lot better than that. The more I watched NBA and NFL games the more my love and passion grew. There is anything out there that I would love to do more than anything else. I know in my heart if allowed to work in the world of sports that I will be very successful and anyone that would hire me would be so grateful to have me on their side. As I am continuing my education I am getting more and more excited about what lies ahead in my future. I know what I know and how I am going to excel in my position in the world of sports. The more I think about it the more excited I get. I can't wait to finish my education and get my degree so I can show the world the knowledge I have in the world of sports. Whichever NFL or NBA organization hires me to do their recruiting is going to be so happy to have me in their organization.

I have always had a love and passion for sports so I decided that I wanted to pursue a degree in Business but with a focus on sports. I have always been very active in my life since a young age so my mom tells me. I was a little bit too active that I couldn't sit still in a classroom. So my mother decided to sign me up for sports and that is where my passion for sports started. I was very competitive and played basketball and football. Not only did I play sports but then I would be home watching all kinds of sports from basketball, football and baseball. My mom would tell everyone I was like a walking encyclopedia when it came to sports. I would be able to carry on full-blown a conversation with older adults about sports before I was even born. They would look at me and ask me how did I know all of that stuff. So as I got older I wanted to be able to stay within the world of sports which is where my heart and passion was so I decided that I would work on it through the Business part of it, doing the management, recruiting etc. I wanted to be a sports recruiter and recruit all the right candidates for basketball or football for colleges and the NBA or NFL. Has I sat down and watched when they did the drafts I would be shaking my head at some of their decisions and saying to myself I know I can do a lot better than that. The more I watched NBA and NFL games the more my love and passion grew. There isn't anything out there that I would love to do more than anything else. I know in my heart if allowed to work in the world of sports that I will be very successful and anyone that would hire me would be so grateful to have me on their side. As I am continuing my education I am getting more and more excited about what lies ahead in my future. I know what I know and how I am going to excel in the Business of Sports Management. The more I think about it the more excited I get. I can't wait to finish my education and get my degree so I can show the world the knowledge I have in the world of sports. Whichever NFL or NBA organization hires me to do their recruiting is going to be so happy to have me in their organization

I always wonder how it would be living in a two-parent household, I used to see some of my friends and get jealous about not having that type of life. However, as I started getting older, I no longer felt that way. My mom was always there for me and there wasn't anything that she wouldn't do for me. My mom always put me first in front of anything. It was hard because it was a struggle for my mom, she was always working and after work running around picking me up and taking me to my sports. She made a lot of sacrifices to be able to provide for me. She put her life on hold for me, just to be there, take care of me and provide for me. I learned a lot watching how my mother took care of me and always helped me stay on the straight and narrow path. To be honest it wasn't easy because when I was younger my mother was always in the school because I couldn't stay still. I started getting older and learning more and started to stay in my seat and out of trouble. Just being me and mom at home made me feel lonely at times and jealous that I didn't have two parents to raise me as some of my friends did. As I got older, I admired my mom for working so hard and taking care of me and it made me look at things differently. I started working differently at school and started making it my number one priority. So I think coming from a single household can be lonely at times but always comes with a bonus, you get all the attention from your mom. You learn to be stronger and work harder for what you want to do in your life. So even though at times it had bothered me for not having a two-parent household I think it made me who I am today. I have come a long way and I will not give up on my dreams and goals in my life. I will be successful and follow my dreams and then I will be able to help my mother retire and give back to her for all she has done in my life. So to me, my mother has been both for me she has been my mother and father figure.

I have always been very active in my life since a young age so my mom tells me. I was a little bit too active that I couldn't sit still in a classroom. So my mother decided to sign me up for sports and that is where my passion for sports started. I was very competitive and played basketball and football. Not only did I play sports but then I would be home watching all kinds of sports from basketball, football and baseball. I wanted to go to college to follow my dreams and pursue sports. My mom would tell everyone I was like a walking encyclopedia when it came to sports. I would be able to carry on full-blown a conversation with older adults about sports before I was even born. They would look at me and ask me how did I know all of that stuff. So as I got older, I realized that I still very much wanted to continue and pursue a career in something that I love and would be great at and that is why I decided to go after a career in Sports Management. So I wanted to be a sports recruiter and recruit all the right candidates for basketball or football for colleges and the NBA or NFL. I would sit down and never miss the drafts and I would shake my head at some of their decisions and say I know I can do a lot better than that. The more I watched NBA and NFL games the more my love and passion grew. I know if allowed to work in the world of sports I will be very successful and anyone that would hire me would be so grateful to have me on their side. As I am continuing my education I am getting more and more excited about what lies ahead in my future. I know what I know and how I am going to excel in my position in the world of sports. The more I think about it the more excited I get. I can't wait to finish my education and get my degree so I can show the world the knowledge I have in the world of sports. Whether it is the NBA or NFL organization that hires me to do their recruiting they are going to be so lucky to have me in their organization. I know that I will excel in their organization.

One thing that I have heard often from my mother was do you think money grows on trees. That was my mother's response to me every time I asked her to buy me something. At first, I would get annoyed wondering why she was saying that to me I didn't quite understand. As I got older I finally understood what she was trying to tell me. My mother was raising me on her own so she had to work very hard to make ends meet and provide for me. So because of that things were not easy for us. I started to learn to accept things the way they were and not to harass my mother for too many things. I was not happy that I couldn't get everything I wanted but I understood why. So I started to learn to do extra things in the house to help my mother out and she would give me a few coins here and there. I like the feeling of making my own money. So I would go around my mother's friend and ask them if they needed help with the trash or snow and they would pay me some money. Having my own coins added up I started saving towards things I wanted to buy and getting my mother a little gift for her birthday and Christmas. I also learned to budget the money I made and separate it so that I had some for saving, spending and investing. It's funny how having to pay for certain things myself all of the sudden I wasn't so eager to run out and spend money. My mother also taught me that I didn't have to rush and spend every penny I made. It's funny how now before I go running to spend or impulse buying I always take a day or two to make a final decision and I notice that over ninety percent of the time I change my mind and don't purchase what I thought I needed and wanted. I have learned that the more you buy the more junk you have and most of the time you don't even use it. So now instead of spending on things collecting dust, I learned that it is fun to save and invest the money you make for your future so you can have enough when you are older and retired. I feel the key is to start saving and investing when you are just starting off.

My mental health is very important to me if I want to be able to focus and be successful in everything I do. I realized as I got older I started to feel stress in my life and a sense of anxiety. I wasn't able to concentrate and make good decisions, I was quick to explode over certain situations that I couldn't control. It was interfering with my relationships at home, work and in life in general. I wasn't taking care of my mental health, I was refusing to get any help and it was destroying my life. I couldn't focus on my assignments at school and kept blaming everyone else for not being able to focus and concentrate. In addition to that, my mental health behavior was also interfering with my part-time job. I wasn't able to work productively which affected my relationships. My grades were not what they used to be because my mental health was all over the place. It was having an impact on my academic performance and I was falling deeper and deeper into a hole. I was in denial at first I didn't think there was anything wrong with my mental health but then I started noticing some of the changes my family had seen in me. I noticed that people didn't want to be around me anymore. My mental health which I was denying was taking over. I started losing relationships and my grades were suffering. I finally started to notice the changes in me and started to seek help to get my mental health under control. The first thing I noticed was the difference I felt, I was more relaxed and happier. Then my family and friends started coming around me more often. My grades started to go back up again and I was so much happier. I then started helping out in my community with the younger kids while they played basketball. I did a lot of talking to them about behaviors and handling their emotions. It felt very good to be able to help the younger kids handle their emotions on the floor when playing basketball. I did a lot of talking and helped them deal with their anger and emotions. I used myself a lot as an example to them and since I was still on the younger side I felt they could related to me better and actually listen to what I had to say.

I come from a very small household, it's always been me, my sister and my mom. We are a small family but very tight-knit, nothing could come between us. I have always had a passion and love for all sports. I have always been very active in my life since a young age so my mom tells me. I was a little bit too active that I couldn't sit still in a classroom. So my mother decided to sign me up for sports and that is where my passion for sports started. I was very competitive and played basketball and football. Not only did I play sports but then I would be home watching all kinds of sports from basketball, football and baseball. My mom would tell everyone I was like a walking encyclopedia when it came to sports. I would be able to carry on a conversation with older adults about sports before I was even born. They would look at me and ask me how did I know all of that stuff. As I got older, I realized that I wanted to pursue a career in something that I love and would be great at and that is why I decided to go after a career to promote something I love and decided I wanted to do Sports Marketing. So I can work with professional sports teams like the NBA and NFL teams to promote their brand, tickets or sponsorship deals. There is so much opportunity when you are working in the Sports Marketing field and it's a great place to start and grow. With my love and passion for Sports, I think I will have many options for where I can go in the Sports Marketing world. Sports marketing opportunities can open a lot of doors which is something I am looking forward to doing. I just don't want to ever settle and just do one part of the sports world, I want to grow and expand to try the different parts of marketing in the sports world. I think this is the perfect place to start as a stepping stone to bigger and greater opportunities in the marketing field involving sports. From what I can see with my family members and my friend's parents a lot of them are stuck in dead-end jobs and so unhappy. This is another reason I am pursuing Sports Marketing because I have a great knowledge of sports. So I feel starting in Sports Marketing could lead to bigger and better things. My mom always told me I was like a walking encyclopedia of sports and I should use that to follow my love.

Wow going to college and going away miles and miles away is exciting to me. My mother wasn't able to go to college so I wanted to make her proud. I also wanted to prove to my mother that I was mature enough to live on my own and do it by myself. So I worked hard all Summer to purchase everything I needed to take with me to college. I didn't want my mother to have to work extra hours or get another job just to help me with what I needed. I was so excited in preparation for my leaving home and going away to North Carolina State University in Raleigh, NC. I graduated with my Associate Degree from Northampton Community College and was transferring to NCSU to continue my education to get my Bachelor’s Degree. So on August 16 what was supposed to be an exciting day for me didn’t exactly go that way. I got in my vehicle with all my belongings in preparation for move-in day which was on August 17. My mother, sister and niece were in my mother’s car to drive down there too to help me move in and get settled in. So, I started driving down to North Carolina and my mother was like 20 minutes behind me because they left a little later. As I was driving on the highway not even two hours into my trip I heard a loud pop in the car and smoke started coming into the vehicle. I started trying to pull the car over to the side of the highway and it had become very stiff. I managed to pull over a little and jumped out of the vehicle. I immediately called my mother to tell her what was happening and I started walking back towards the car to open the door and the car was engulfed in flames. My mother told me to call the cops/firemen immediately. Also on the highway was a lady that saw what was happening and she pulled over to try to assist me. Unfortunately, with the car being engulfed in flames I wasn’t able to get back in the car to get any of my belongings out at all. The cops arrived at the scene and to be honest I don’t remember how long it took them to arrive. However, it took the firemen forever to arrive at the scene. After going over everything with the police I just stood there watching everything that I worked so hard for during the Summer continue to burn right in front of my eyes. I just couldn’t believe that a day that started as an exciting day turned into a nightmare. I have never in my life been so devasted ever before. It took a while for my mother to get to where I was and the first thing I saw was her in complete tears running to me. I was so overwhelmed and didn’t know what to do, whether to turn back and go home and forget about the whole move-in day for school or what. I continued to sit on the side of the road while my mother waited for me to decide if I was going to go home or whether or not I was going to continue with my plans to go to school. I decided that I wasn't going to let this setback stop me from going to school and following my dreams to graduate with a degree in sports management. I planned to be the best Sports Recruiter than anyone else out there.

My career goals all revolve around my passion and love for sports. I have always been very active in my life since a young age so my mom tells me. I was a little bit too active that I couldn't sit still in a classroom. So my mother decided to sign me up for sports and that is where my passion for sports started. I was very competitive and played basketball and football. Not only did I play sports but then I would be home watching all kinds of sports from basketball, football and baseball. My mom would tell everyone I was like a walking encyclopedia when it came to sports. I would be able to carry on full-blown a conversation with older adults about sports before I was even born. They would look at me and ask me how did I know all of that stuff. So As I got older, I realized that I wanted to pursue a career in something that I love and would be great at and that is why I decided to go after a career in Sports Management. So I decided that I wanted to be a sports recruiter and recruit all the right candidates for basketball or football for colleges and the NBA or NFL. I sat and watched when they did the drafts and I would shake my head at some of their decisions and say I know I can do a lot better than that. The more I watched NBA and NFL games the more my love and passion grew. There is anything out there that I would love to do more than anything else. I know in my heart if allowed to work in the world of sports that I will be very successful and anyone that would hire me would be so grateful to have me on their side. During my high school year, I was completely devasted because I had played all my life basketball and when I tried out for the high school team I didn't make the team. All my friends that grew up playing with me couldn't believe it either and that caused me a devasting experience for me. I shut down and was an emotional wreck, I couldn't handle it and shut out everyone from my life. Has I shut everyone out of my life I started thinking and decided that I would go back out and fight for my love and passion and not give up. So I move forward with my goals. So as I am continuing my education I am getting more and more excited about what lies ahead in my future. I know what I know and how I am going to excel in my position in the world of sports. The more I think about it the more excited I get. I can't wait to finish my education and get my degree so I can show the world the knowledge I have in the world of sports. Whichever NFL or NBA organization hires me to do their recruiting is going to be so happy to have me in their organization.

I always wonder how it would be living in a two-parent household, I used to see some of my friends and get jealous about not having that type of life. However, as I started getting older I no longer felt that way. My mom was always there for me and there wasn't anything that she wouldn't do for me. My mom always put me first in front of anything. It was hard because it was a struggle for my mom, she was always working and after work running around picking me up and taking me to my sports. She made a lot of sacrifices to be able to provide for me. She put her life on hold for me, just to be there, take care of me and provide for me. I learned a lot watching how my mother took care of me and always helped me stay on the straight and narrow path. To be honest it wasn't easy because when I was younger my mother was always in the school because I couldn't stay still. I started getting older and learning more and started to stay in my seat and out of trouble. Just being me and mom at home made me feel lonely at times jealous that I didn't have two parents to raise me as some of my friends did. As I got older I admired my mom for working so hard and taking care of me and it made me look at things differently. I started working differently at school and started making it my number one priority. So I think coming from a single household can be lonely at times but always comes with a bonus, you get all the attention from your parent. You learn to be stronger and work harder for what you want to do in your life. So even though at times it had bothered me for not having a two-parent household I think it made me who I am today. I have come a long way and I will not give up on my dreams and goals in my life. I will be successful and follow my dreams and then I will be able to help my mother retire and give back to her for all she has done in my life. So coming from a single household has both its advantages and disadvantages but the bottom line is what you do with it and make with it. I will use what I learn from my mother growing up to help other kids in the same situation. Just because you come from a single household doesn't mean that you can't be successful at all, so I want to make sure to show them that. So I want to make a difference in not one but many other people's lives. I have seen some of my friends fall off track because they didn't have a supportive parent so I don't want that to happen to other people. So everything I work hard to achieve in my life I want to be able to share it with others so that they will succeed. Coming from a single-parent household doesn't mean failure but a chance to prove the world wrong.

My career goals all revolve around my passion and love for sports. I have always been very active in my life since a young age so my mom tells me. I was a little bit too active that I couldn't sit still in a classroom. So my mother decided to sign me up for sports and that is where my passion for sports started. I was very competitive and played basketball and football. Not only did I play sports but then I would be home watching all kinds of sports from basketball, football and baseball. My mom would tell everyone I was like a walking encyclopedia when it came to sports. I would be able to carry on full-blown a conversation with older adults about sports before I was even born. They would look at me and ask me how did I know all of that stuff. So As I got older, I realized that I wanted to pursue a career in something that I love and would be great at and that is why I decided to go after a career in Sports Management. So I decided that I wanted to be a sports recruiter and recruit all the right candidates for basketball or football for colleges and the NBA or NFL. Have I sat and watched when they did the drafts and I would shake my head at some of their decisions and say I know I can do a lot better than that. The more I watched NBA and NFL games the more my love and passion grew. There is anything out there that I would love to do more than anything else. I know in my heart if allowed to work in the world of sports that I will be very successful and anyone that would hire me would be so grateful to have me on their side. As I am continuing my education I am getting more and more excited about what lies ahead in my future. I know what I know and how I am going to excel in my position in the world of sports. The more I think about it the more excited I get. I can't wait to finish my education and get my degree so I can show the world the knowledge I have in the world of sports. Whichever NFL or NBA organization hires me to do their recruiting is going to be so happy to have me in their organization.

Just to hear the word Cancer is such a scary thing. It seems like more and more people all over are getting it. My grandmother passed away from cancer before I was born, so I never got to have that relationship with her. Just a few years ago my mother was also diagnosed with Cancer, I didn't know want to say to her or to even act around her. I was scared for my mother and also scared for myself not knowing what I would do without her. After several months of chemo and treatment, she has been Cancer-free and I pray that she will remain cancer-free. I saw how everything changed when that happened, it brought my family closer together and bonded like we never did before. I guess after my grandmother passed away we were all nervous and worried about my mother. My mother is the glue to my family and even though we at times don't see eye to eye we love each other dearly and wouldn't want to lose her. Besides my grandmother and mother, my aunt also had Cancer, so it's a scary thing to see a few people in my family that have had Cancer and that has affected me a lot because I worry. It also got me thinking and changing how I eat and do things. My mother told me that what we eat also plays a huge part in preventing Cancer. So I pray that my family and I remain safe and healthy. It's said to see how many people are getting Cancer from a 2-year-old to the elderly, I hope they can find a way to prevent and cure cancer. Life is short so we have to all start taking better care of ourselves so we can prevent this deadly disease. It has gotten me always wondering and worrying about it, whether my mom will remain Cancer free or will the Cancer come back. I am also very fearful that I may get Cancer too and it scares me so much. I think of all the people in my life that has had it or even died from it and I fear I may be next. I want to be able to finish school get a degree, get married and have half kids without fearing that I will be next to get Cancer. There has to be something we can do to stop the increase in people getting Cancer. Cancer is such a deadly disease it affects so many people nowadays. It's hard when someone we love has been affected by Cancer because it does affect our lives as well. We spend so much time worrying about them that it does interfere with all things in our lives. My life did change a lot because I spend so much time worrying about the people that I love that I don't take care of myself.

Knowledge is everything so having an opportunity to get an education is the best thing possible you can ask for. Unfortunately, not everyone can afford to go to school so being able to take advantage of a scholarship means a lot to people like me. You see I come from a single-family household, my mom has raised me and done everything for me. She worked hard to put a roof over our heads and provided everything I needed to go to school etc. It hasn't been easy for us but my mom always finds a way to budget her pay to make things work. Now that I am in college she continues to try to find other ways of making money to pay for my school. You see her going on different websites and selling stuff from our home that is no longer in use to get extra money. I don't want my mom working so hard just for me to be able to go to school. You see the way I look at it I feel education should be free for any kid that what to get an education. I don't understand why some country offers free education and we don't have that here in the USA. Education is everything and no one can ever take that from you. It's an opportunity to grow and spread your wings and make a difference in the world. However without being able to pay for school all your hopes and dreams can fade away. So whenever I can I am looking for scholarship opportunities so I can apply. I want to be able to continue to learn to grow and hopefully make a difference in the world. To be honest I don't know why it has to be so hard for some people to be able to go to school, why can't they make school affordable for all? Unfortunately, a lot of people don't go to school because it's too expensive and they don't want to go into debt just to get a degree and then not be able to find a job in that particular field. These are some of the reasons why I keep pursuing scholarships to be able to go to school and get a job in that field and hopefully make a difference in someone's life. So to me, this scholarship would make it more doable for me to get my degree.

My plans for the future all revolve around my passion and my love for sports. I have always been very active in my life since a young age so my mom tells me. I was a little bit too active that I couldn't sit still in a classroom. So my mother decided to sign me up for sports and that is where my passion for sports grew. I was very competitive and played basketball and football. Not only did I play sports but then I would be home watching all kinds of sports from basketball, football and baseball. My mom would tell everyone I was like a walking encyclopedia when it came to sports. I would be able to carry on a conversation with older adults about sports before I was even born. They would look at me and ask me how did I know all of that stuff. As I got older, I realized that I wanted to pursue a career in something that I love and would be great at and that is why I decided to go after a career in Sports Management. I want to be a sports recruiter and recruit all the right candidates for basketball or football for colleges and NBA or NFL. I would sit and watch when they did the drafts and shake my head at some of their choices and say I could do a lot better than that. So my plans for my future would be to continue to pursue a career in Sports Management. So for me, this scholarship would get me one step closer to finishing my education. Sometimes it's hard to follow your dreams and goals when you don't have the money to pay for your education. For me it has been a struggle because I have to depend on my mother to help me pay for school as well, she is a single mom and it has been so hard for her to help me pay for my education. So I try working part-time to take some of the stress off her back but it hasn't been easy. Education is so important for all of us however it's so expensive. My mom always said that education should be free but if we start to mess up and not take our education seriously and fail our classes then we should be required to pay for our school.

Have you ever thought about where would you be or what would happen if you needed help and no one would help you out? This is exactly why is so important to help others because you never know when you will be on the other side needing assistance. Let me tell a little story of what just recently happened to me. You see on August 16 I was driving my vehicle fully loaded with all my stuff for me to move into my dorm the next morning. My mother, sister and niece were also driving their vehicles because they were coming with me to help me move into the dorms and help me get settled in. However, they were running a little behind and I decided to start driving ahead because I was excited and looking forward to getting there. So they were maybe 20 minutes to half an hour behind me. So we were going to NCSU which was at least 8 hours from where we reside. So as I was driving on the highway all of a sudden I heard a loud pop and then smoke coming into the car. I didn't know what to do, so I tried to pull the car to the side and the car was stiff and not moving a whole lot. So I finally got the car over to the side of the highway grabbed my phone jumped out of the vehicle and called my mother. So I was telling my mom what had happened and started going back to the vehicle to see about the smoke. So I open the door but the car was engulfed in flames. My mom told me to call the cops immediately. So I called the cops and told them what had happened and they arrived very quickly but the fire was already out of control so they couldn't use an extinguisher for the fire. Eventually, the fire department came to put out the fire. By the time the fire department came, the car was completely burnt out from the front to the back. There was absolultely nothing to be savage in the vehicle or the items for my move to the dorm. It was a devasting experience for me and my family but God was there and got me out of the vehicle safely. When my mother's friend found out about what had happened she spread the word and before you knew it people were contacting my mother and sisters and replacing the stuff that I had packed to take into my dorm room. I never knew that people would be so kind and generous to help us out during this time of need. My mother also contacted the school to let them know what had happened and the school was extremely amazing as well. They put extra blankets and sheets on my dorm bed and also put extra school shirts for me as well. In addition to that the school staff and alumni got together and provided me with several gift cards so that I could replace some of my belongings as well. So you see why it's so important to help others out because you never know what people are going through or went through. We need to just be kind human being and help each other out, it's the right thing to do. We can make a difference and set an example by helping other people out.

Well to me I have to say my mother is my father figure. My mother has been raising me on her own since I was 4 years old. Unfortunately, my dad left us and my mother and my sister were the only immediate family I knew that raise me. So that is the reason I say my mother is my father figure as well. You know what is so special about my mom is how she had a full-time job and juggle everything and did everything she needed to do to make sure I was ok. She put her life on hold making sure she took good care of me and provided me with everything I needed. My mother got me registered and involved in every sport that she could afford to enroll me. So we started with a Christian basketball program at the age of 5 and everything took off from there. My mother made sure to try to get my male coaches to spend time with me during the game so they could be positive role models. She also got me involved in flag football as well. I made a lot of friends and my mother made sure she kept me around positive role models. My mother only had one job and no other help but she kept investing in me so that I can have opportunities to play sports and keep out of trouble. I was very good at flag football that a coach notice me and ask my mom if I could take part in their traveling team. So my mom asked me and I said yes, so again she enrolled me and invested her time and money. To be honest I don't know that a lot of my friend's mom would have done that for them. Most moms would drop off their kids for practice or games and leave, but never my mom she stood there for every practice and every game. My mother also went through a stage where she was diagnosed with cancer. She had to go to the hospital for her surgery and during her stay in the hospital, all she did was call my sister to check up on me. She was worried about me eating and being well instead of resting after her surgery. Then she started her chemo and still tried to take care of me and worried about me. My mom stood by and was there while I graduated from a community college. I am now transferring to further my education to get my bachelor's degree and she is still there cheering, encouraging and supporting me. So you see my mother is my mother but she has always been my father figure as well and always cheered, supported me and never left me. She is the best mother and father anyone can ask for that is what makes her so special.

I have always had a passion and love for all sports. I have always been very active in my life since a young age so my mom tells me. I was a little bit too active that I couldn't sit still in a classroom. So my mother decided to sign me up for sports and that is where my passion for sports started. I was very competitive and played basketball and football. But not only did I play sports but then I would be home watching all kinds of sports from basketball, football and baseball. My mom would tell everyone I was like a walking encyclopedia when it came to sports. I would be able to carry on a conversation with older adults about sports before I was even born. They would look at me and ask me how did I know all of that stuff. As I got older, I realize that I wanted to pursue a career in something that I love and would be great at and that is why I decided to go after a career to promote something I love and decided I wanted to do Sports Marketing. So I can work with professional sports teams like NBA and NFL teams to promote their brand, tickets or sponsorship deals. There is so much opportunity when you are working in the Sports Marketing field and it's a great place to start and grow. With my love and passion for Sports and I think I will have many options for where I can go in the Sports Marketing world. Sports marketing opportunities can open a lot of doors which is something I am looking forward to doing. I just don't want to ever settle and just do one part of the sports world, I want to grow and expand to try the different parts of marketing in the sports world. I think this is the perfect place to start as a stepping stone to bigger and greater opportunities in the marketing field involving sports. From what I can see with my family members and my friend's parent a lot of them are stuck in dead-end jobs and so unhappy. So this is another reason I am pursuing Sports Marketing because I have a great knowledge of sports. So I feel starting in Sports Marketing could lead to bigger and better things. My mom always told me I was like a walking encyclopedia of sports and I should use that to follow my love.

I consider myself a nontraditional student however some people may argue that I am not correct. I guess there are many different interpretations of a non-traditional student. So let me tell you about myself I come from a family of three, my oldest sister and I am the baby of the family. I consider myself a non-traditional student because it's only the three of us and my father left early on when I was only 3 years old so I consider myself a nontraditional student. Life hasn't always been easy for us at all, my mother worked full-time to do her best for us and to provide for us. I am sure that by now you probably thinking how is this any different than the majority these days and you are right is not, unfortunately, these days it's considered the norm. My mom put her life on hold to give us the best possible life and provide for us. All she did was work and took care of us she had no social life at all. All she did was work, run us to school, after school activities, doctors appointment you name, she never had any time for herself. She made sure to keep us always involved in sports and other extracurricular activities to stay out of trouble. She was always very protective and strict so I was always upset that she didn't allow us to run around with no supervision. Because of this, I have grown to be very determined to finish my education so that I don't have to depend on anyone and I can follow my dreams. Even though I was upset at my mother for being so strict I do understand why she raised us the way she did. I hope. that when I finish my education I can give back to my mother for all she has done for us,

Let's see why I think healthy eating habits are important, there are a few of them that come to mind. When I was younger all I did was eat junk food and tons of sugary juices all the time. I didn't want to listen to what my mom told me or anyone else at all. After a while I realize that I was getting a huge belly but no weight anywhere else. I notice that I was bouncy all over the place and being reckless. After all the bounce all over the place, I would crash. In addition to that, I was always getting in trouble quick temper and anger. So my mother was constantly in the school talking to teachers, counselors etc. So then she was reading up on eating what you eat can affect a lot of things, especially behaviors. So little by little my mother started removing all the juices with sugar and removing things from my diet. After a while, we started noticing some changes, not big changes but small changes in how I would react to things that would set my behavior off before. Then my mother continues to take other stuff out of my diet little by little. Before you knew it we didn't have any juice at home unless it was organic and had no sugar. I was able to focus on my schoolwork and wasn't jumping all around like I used to do. Things started coming together for me, I lost all the belly fat and when I was playing basketball I wasn't getting tired quickly like I had been when I was taking all that sugar in. What changed my mind and how I was eating was when my mother was diagnosed with Cancer, She brought in all these materials that talk about eating more nutritious food can help prevent some types of Cancer. So my mother made a lot of changes in our nutrition, she didn't cut everything out but did a lot of substitutions in our meals. At first I wasn't happy with all the different meals she was cooking and the seasoning she was putting on our food, but I then started getting used to it and it didn't bother me at all. I also notice I felt better all around, I wasn't getting angry as I used and even my skin look different. Before I knew it those meals that I thought to be boring or flavorless were now delicious to me. But overall me changing what I was eating made me feel so different and look healthier all over. It was a huge adjustment but I am so glad that we did it together as a family and feel so much better mentally and physically.

I have always eaten whatever I felt like eating and didn't care what anyone thought. I was always on the smaller side and people would look at me eating and laugh. I would eat like 4 or 5 cheeseburgers back to back and fries. I was always on the smaller side and ate like I was an adult. I got older and involved in sports I realize that my bad eating habits were not helping me be successful in my sports but hurting me. So then I started to try to eat better and healthier. I started cutting out all the sugary juices that I would drink like water. I started to read the labels on the items I was going to eat and started cutting down on the processed items with high sugar. Then my mom was diagnosed with cancer and that is when things started to change with me. I started to read up on Cancer and how they said a lot had to do with the food with it and our surroundings which got me thinking and making changes. I read sugar was a big factor in Cancer so I started making huge changes with reading everything I was about to eat and put in my body. I made changes in my eating and I notice my body feels different I have more energy and am not as moody as I was before. I also feel me eating healthier helps my brain focus as well I can maintain more information and think clearer. I am glad that I have changed my eating habits because it promotes a healthier lifestyle for me. I notice with me eating healthier helps me enjoy my life better, I have a better attitude towards things and see things differently. In addition to changing my eating habits, I also find that I have changed how I see people. I am not as judgemental as I used to be. I try to see the good in everyone and try to help people as much as I can without expecting something back in return. It keeps you happier which also helps your mental health which is also part of your health journey. So yes your health journey is about food but it doesn't end there, is also about mental and physical health as well. We all need to change how we see things and take better care of health and mental well-being.