Salutations, my name is Destiny. I am a high school senior and currently in a dual-enrollment program with Eastern Arizona College. I play the tenor drum for the Morenci High School Marching Band, and this is my tenth year in Girl Scouts. Regarding honor societies, I am in the Tri-M Honor Society and the National Honor Society. I am finishing my Gold Award project for Girl Scouts, which is creating “then and now” postcards of my hometown, Morenci, and giving the printing rights away to the visitor’s center and museum so Morenci can be spread around the world. It has been successful, with a postcard going as far as South Africa. I have been working on that project for about two years now. I have also been involved in several volunteer opportunities, like river clean-ups and food drives. I made an anti-bullying campaign where I made an anti-bullying design and put it on shirts and pencils to give to people around town and in my school. I have been accepted to Arizona State University. If I can get enough money to do so, I would love to get my doctorate in Psychology to become a Psychologist. My overall goal is to be able to help as many people as I can on the mental health scale and bring awareness to others about mental health issues. I do believe it is a subject that is not talked about enough, and I also think most people are not educated enough on mental issues. From talking to people, I know that most don’t understand how severe they can get. If everyone understood the severity of mental health issues, the world could be a better place, and it would be easier for everyone to help each other. If I were to start my own charity, I would want the money to go towards helping people with their mental health, whether it goes to mental health institutions, therapy, or straight to the people dealing with mental health issues and their families. I want to ensure getting help is simple, affordable, and not corrupt. There can be endless possibilities when figuring out what services to perform for the charity. For example, I could make a design and put it on shirts for people to buy, and that money would go to the charity. Another example would be making an event, like taking inspiration from the Suicide Awareness Walk that my town has every year. They walk around two miles in town in honor of their loved ones. Doing something like this allows people to donate to a valuable cause, spreads awareness, and shows people that they are not alone in their struggles. With everything that is happening in the world as of right now, we need each other more than ever. Through my efforts to help people on the mental health scale, and through the efforts of everyone involved in the charity, I know it would make a difference and help many people. All it will take is time and effort.

My grandpa was my best friend. We did everything together, from watching cartoons to collecting tomatoes from his garden to doing tours of our Ghost Town. He was an amazing man who gave everyone a home to come to. When somebody walked into our Ghost Town, they came out with a new friend, or even new people they would consider family. Thanks to the way my grandpa was, the Ghost Town was magical, and it was a safe space for my family. He adored every one of us and was one of the funniest people I’ve ever met. One of my favorite memories with him was when we were playing with blocks. We were going to build a house big enough for the two of us out of giant LEGO blocks, and nobody else was going to be allowed in but us. This was the last memory I was able to make with him. A few days before I turned three, my grandpa was murdered a few steps away from our house. It was a world stopper for everyone in my family. Everyone in the family had their mental health at an all-time low. Nobody was the same after that, and neither was the ghost town. On top of that, police corruption, news broadcasts, and visitors obsessed with crime would not leave the family alone about the matter. It was a traumatic experience, and it has left several people in my family with mental health issues, including me. Feeling that form of grief at such a young age was extremely confusing for me. After the events during and following his death, I developed a lack of safety no matter where I went, a lack of trust in the police, anxiety issues, and some PTSD issues. There are times when, for weeks on end, I have nightmares about that day. Even after over fifteen years since his passing, sometimes losing him still hurts like it was yesterday, and it is a hard pill to swallow that he is not able to see and be proud of everything I have accomplished, thanks to someone else’s choices. Even with this hard loss, I did learn some things that I try to live by from my grandpa, one of these lessons being never taking time or people for granted. You will never know how long you have left with someone before something happens. When you visit loved ones, always make sure to say “I love you” to them and hug them a little tighter before leaving. Always take opportunities to make memories with someone, take pictures and videos, and always make sure the people you care about feel loved. Another thing I learned is to make your mark in the world in a positive way. Show people acts of kindness, even when they are small. Help people whenever you can. Be compassionate towards others. Always be humble, but confident in yourself, and stand for what you believe in. Always be grateful for what you have, and for what you receive. Give more than you take. Be a role model, and give yourself a good reputation that people will remember when they think of you. It is essential to have a reputation you are proud of and honored to have. Losses are difficult to go through, especially when they are close to you. However, you only truly lose them when you lose their memory. Appreciate the time you have with others, keep your loved ones in your heart, and keep their memory alive through your actions and words.

Being a first-generation student is rewarding, but difficult at times. It makes you a little prouder of who you are, considering you are making history in your family by going to college. It gives you a drive to do good, which has a positive impact on school performance. However, there are struggles to it as well. I have really struggled with the thought of leaving my family to go to college in another city. There is also a lot of pressure. Often, my family members have talked about their dreams of going to college and have put those dreams on me. They boast to people about what I plan to do in college, almost as if I have already done it, which does stress me out at times. My dream is to become a Psychologist and help people with their struggles in mental health. I have seen that recently, more people have struggled with mental health issues, and fewer of them are getting help. They are suffering in silence instead, and that is not good for them. I want to help them and everyone that I can, because I feel like that is my purpose in life. I am driven by my family, friends, and the people I know I will impact in the future. My family and friends have always been by my side and supported me in any way they could. They know I can achieve my goals and do anything I set my mind to, and I could never thank them enough for that. The people I will meet in the future drive me as well, because I won’t be able to meet them and help them if I don't reach my goals. When God has us cross paths, I want to be able to make a difference in the people of the future. This scholarship will help me continue my journey because it will help give me the finances I need to make that doctorate in Psychology happen. I have the determination and motivation to obtain it; all I need is the money to do so. College is very expensive, but it will give me the knowledge I need to change the world on the mental health scale.

Mental illnesses hit very close to home. A lot of my close family members struggle with mental illnesses, from agorophobia to depression, to anxiety, and even to addiction to several things like prescriptions or alcohol. I also have several friends with different mental disorders, such as bipolar disorder, PTSD, anxiety, depression, and more. There have been family members and friends who have ended up in the hospital because of their mental struggles, and some have even lost their lives to it. Not only have mental illnesses affected people close to me, but they have affected me as well. I have issues with anxiety and PTSD, and I know from personal experience that they are a challenge that is not easily dealt with, especially without proper help.Sometimes experiencing the impact of mental ilses has a negative impact on daily life. Experiencing mental illnesses can make a person feel trapped and alone, especially if they don't have the help they need. It is easy to feel like there is no escape or relief in sight, which can cause a spiral into a worse mental state or more mental issues. When it comes to being a witness, seeing loved ones in this kind of pain can cause extreme guilt and stress. They can feel like they aren't doing enough for the person, even when they have done everything they can. This can cause mental health issues for the witness as well, causing them to potentially go down the same spiral as their loved ones. I have seen what it is like for a person struggling and suffering in silence because they couldn't get help. Because of this, I want to be able to help people on the mental health scale. I want to be able to provide more people with the help they need, so they can have a better quality of life. With everything that is happening in this world, mental health is dropping, and I want to be a part of bringing it back up. I also want to bring awareness to others about mental health, because it has been severely overlooked, especially by the people who have not experienced mental illnesses. If more people understand the severe impact of mental health issues, there would be more people willing to help, which is what this world needs. To do this, I plan on getting my doctorate in Psychology, so I know everything I need to. Then, I will find a facility for psychologists to work there. While there, I will get people who need my help. I will listen to them, talk to them, and find solutions for their problems, no matter what it is. I will ensure they always have a way to contact me whenever they need me, and I will give my best efforts to everyone who needs my help, including their friends and families. If everyone got the help they needed, this world would be a better place. Nobody would need to sit there and struggle in silence anymore. Nobody would need to find solutions in prescriptions, drugs, alcohol, or violence anymore. I am going to help make that happen.