My interest and journey to public health heightened when I found out a family member of mine lost their life due to the complications of AIDS. I live in a state where teen pregnancy and STIs/STDs rates are higher than the average state. This was a normality I couldn’t settle for as the concept of sex education and public health were taboo in my community. My family is from a low socioeconomic status where above normal STIs/STDs rates are in well-directed correlation. None of my grandparents graduated from high school so education became a top priority to break this system. I decided my generation and the generation after me will carry a heart and mind for public health into their own lives. The innovative field of Public Health has taught me and still is teaching me, the importance of education, advocacy, and health. I chose to major in public health so I can enact change in my community while spreading imperative awareness for these topics I never heard about growing up. Choosing public health has filled my heart in unthinkable ways, mainly through educating people in my community on how they can better themselves health wise. Throughout my time as an undergraduate student, I’ve fallen in love with public health when learning about new, upcoming research topics about today’s world while also stepping out of the classroom to lend a hand to the atrocities public health has caused in the Tuscaloosa community. It begins to become incredibly rewarding when I can now put the pieces of my passion together as I enact and apply principles to my daily life. In May 2023, I will be commissioning as a 2nd Lieutenant in the United States Army as a Chemical Officer. I plan on carrying on this passion in my leadership by educating my soldiers on how to properly take care of themselves health wise and refer them to the resources that the Army offers soldiers. I’m not ignorant to know that this process can be new and hard for some soldiers; however, I hope to be a beacon of help. Throughout my lieutenant time, I will be working on obtaining my Master’s in Public Health with a Concentration in Health Communication and Promotion. I plan on applying to the Engineering and Environmental Science Officer program in the Army, where I would identify and evaluate potential health risks and develop a plan to control or prevent illness, disease, or injury. After I finish my time, I desire to enroll in a doctoral program in public health. Stepping out into the civilian world, I would love to serve as a State Official where I will have the opportunity to advise policy makers on policies that can affect the community’s health outcomes. This scholarship would assist me by helping me put money towards my living expenses throughout the final semester of obtaining my Bachelor's of Science.