In a heartbeat. I want to become a child psychologist and/or a crisis counselor for the youth. I want to be someone whose children want & need to talk to. Children and teen mental health has been so overlooked in the last few years. Having an adult that will listen and understand is so important in our day and age. Having someone that has lived through the loss is important. I feel as children and teens get overlooked or pushed aside when it comes to mental health. Psychology is a field of medicine that gets pursued but not in the direction where it helps children. I want to become that person. I'd love to be able to help children and teens in crisis. I want to be that person they can rely on and talk to. My goal in life is to become a child psychologist and/or a children's mental health counselor. My best friend took her life when we were just 13 and I had no idea she even felt that way. I want to pursue this career to help those children and teens that believe they don't have any other choice. I want to be able to give them a person to talk to and a person who will listen to them when they are feeling discouraged. I believe with my experience that this is the path I am meant to take in my life. If Valerie had a professional to talk to, someone she could confide in, maybe she would never have taken her life. We don't know because it's already done. I don't want to see other children or teens have to go through what I did. Losing Valerie was a living nightmare for so long. If they do, then I want to help them through their tough time. It took me a long time to find the right person to talk with before I was able to deal with all the feelings I had. I want to be that person they open up to and feel comfortable talking to. I want to and hope to make a change in the life of a child. Whether it be a child in crisis or one in depression. At 11 years old I was diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder. A few years later, I lost my childhood home to a house fire and I lost my best friend to suicide. I not only still had GAD but I was then diagnosed with borderline PTSD. I have survived testing anxiety, social anxiety and recovered from PTSD. It's been a challenge but I've preserved. Our youth today and tomorrow need someone that has had their experiences to feel comfortable and open up to talk. This scholarship will help me move toward my goal in child psychology and mental health.

In a heartbeat. I want to become a child psychologist and/or a crisis counselor for the youth. I want to be someone whose children want & need to talk to. Children and teen mental health has been so overlooked in the last few years. Having an adult that will listen and understand is so important in our day and age. Having someone that has lived through the loss is important. I feel as children and teens get overlooked or pushed aside when it comes to mental health. Psychology is a field of medicine that gets pursued but not in the direction where it helps children. I want to become that person. I'd love to be able to help children and teens in crisis. I want to be that person they can rely on and talk to. My goal in life is to become a child psychologist and/or a children's mental health counselor. My best friend took her life when we were just 13 and I had no idea she even felt that way. I want to pursue this career to help those children and teens that believe they don't have any other choice. I want to be able to give them a person to talk to and a person who will listen to them when they are feeling discouraged. I believe with my past experience that this is the path I am meant to take in my life. If Valerie had a professional to talk to, someone she could confide in, maybe she would never have taken her life. We don't know because it's already done. I don't want to see other children or teens have to go through what I did. Losing Valerie was a living nightmare for so long. If they do, then I want to help them through their tough time. It took me a long time to find the right person to talk with before I was able to deal with all the feelings I had. I want to be that person they open up to and feel comfortable talking to. I want to and hope to make a change in the life of a child. Whether it be a child in crisis or one in depression. At 11 years old I was diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder. A few years later, I lost my childhood home to a house fire and I lost my best friend to suicide. I not only still had GAD but I was then diagnosed with borderline PTSD. I have survived testing anxiety, social anxiety and recovered from PTSD. It's been a challenge but I've preserved. Our youth today and tomorrow need someone that has had their experiences to feel comfortable and open up to talk. This scholarship will help me move toward my goal in child psychology and mental health.

My dream is to help children & teens with mental health illnesses and crises.

In a heartbeat. I want to become a child psychologist and/or a crisis counselor for the youth. I want to be someone those children want & need to talk to. Children and teen mental health has been so overlooked in the last few years. Having an adult that will listen and understand is so important in our day and age. Having someone that has lived through the loss is important. I feel as children and teens get overlooked or pushed aside when it comes to mental health. Psychology is a field of medicine that gets pursued but not in the direction where it helps children. I want to become that person. I'd love to be able to help children and teens in crisis. I want to be that person they can rely on and talk to. My goal in life is to become a child psychologist and/or a children's mental health counselor. My best friend took her life when we were just 13 and I had no idea she even felt that way. I want to pursue this career to help those children and teens that believe they don't have any other choice. I want to be able to give them a person to talk to and a person who will listen to them when they are feeling discouraged. I believe with my experience that this is the path I am meant to take in my life. If Valerie had a professional to talk to, someone she could confide in, maybe she would never have taken her life. We don't know because it's already done. I don't want to see other children or teens have to go through what I did. Losing Valerie was a living nightmare for so long. If they do, then I want to help them through their tough time. It took me a long time to find the right person to talk with before I was able to deal with all the feelings I had. I want to be that person they open up to and feel comfortable talking to. I want to and hope to make a change in the life of a child. Whether it be a child in crisis or one in depression. At 11 years old I was diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder. A few years later, I lost my childhood home to a house fire and I lost my best friend to suicide. I not only still had GAD but I was then diagnosed with borderline PTSD. I have survived testing anxiety, social anxiety and recovered from PTSD. It's been a challenge but I've preserved. Our youth today and tomorrow need someone that has had their experiences to feel comfortable and open up to talk. This scholarship will help me move toward my goal in child psychology and mental health.

In a heartbeat, I’m a senior. I’m not the kid I was freshman year. I gave up in 9th grade. Losing those I love, and not being social affected me a lot. I lost my best friend to suicide, I was at such a low, and the last thing on my mind was school. I lost my focus on friends, family and school. I let myself fall into a deep hole, I never thought I would get out of it. During 8th grade, I lost my best friend to suicide. She was 13 and was my best friend; we did everything together. After her passing, I lost love for everything that made me think of her. I lost my love for dance, for hanging out with people, and I lost the effort to try in school. I never let anything affect me in 8th grade, then I went into high school and that’s when her passing hit me. During my freshman year, I gave up trying. I never wanted to be at school, I never wanted to do homework or classwork. I had no motivation to do anything. I just wanted to get out of the mess and be by myself forever. I never let anyone know I was hurting; it was too hard for me. I bottled up my emotions and never let anything show. Talking to people about her death broke my heart. Near the end of the school year when Covid was just starting, I lost hope for myself, I lost myself, I wasn’t me anymore. I was this sad girl who never talked to anyone and fell into an obsession with doing drugs and drinking. I didn’t care anymore. One night I was done. I was tired of hurting. I wanted to be with Valerie. That’s when I attempted suicide. My heart was aching from the pain I bottled up. I never talked to anyone, I never let myself cry in front of anyone. I was a broken little girl. I don’t remember much from that night. I remember waking up, but my mom didn’t know anything. I was too scared to admit what I did. I saw that what I did wasn’t going to help anything, it was just going to bring pain to other people like Valerie’s death brought me. After that night, everything hit me. I was needed, I was loved, I was wanted. I shouldn’t give up in school, I should persevere and not give up. School was the one thing I needed to focus on. I couldn’t let myself not graduate and go to college. I wanted to do my best in high school, so I went half online and half in person. It helped me a lot for those few months we had to be home. I was on top of my grades and doing my best in school. No matter what, school came first. I learned to accept myself, I learned that grief is okay and it affects everyone differently. I want to help children see the positive side of life. I want to help children and teens see that they all matter. Being a child psychologist/mental health therapist is now my dream. Everyone matters, no matter what their age. Valerie is and always will be my motivation. If I can help save children/teens from doing what Valerie did, then I have succeeded and that is exactly what I want to do.

In a heartbeat, I’m a senior. I’m not the kid I was freshman year. I gave up in 9th grade. Losing those I love, and not being social affected me a lot. I lost my best friend to suicide, I was at such a low, and the last thing on my mind was school. I lost my focus on friends, family and school. I let myself fall into a deep hole, I never thought I would get out of it. During 8th grade, I lost my best friend to suicide. She was 13 and was my best friend; we did everything together. After her passing, I lost love for everything that made me think of her. I lost my love for dance, and for hanging out with people, and I lost the effort to try in school. I never let anything affect me in 8th grade, then I went into high school and that’s when her passing hit me. During my freshman year, I gave up trying. I never wanted to be at school, I never wanted to do homework or classwork. I had no motivation to do anything. I just wanted to get out of the mess and be by myself forever. I never let anyone know I was hurting; it was too hard for me. I bottled up my emotions and never let anything show. Talking to people about her death broke my heart. Near the end of the school year when Covid was just starting, I lost hope for myself, I lost myself, I wasn’t me anymore. I was this sad girl who never talked to anyone and fell into an obsession with doing drugs and drinking. I didn’t care anymore. One night I was done. I was tired of hurting. I wanted to be with Valerie. That’s when I attempted suicide. My heart was aching from the pain I bottled up. I never talked to anyone, I never let myself cry in front of anyone. I was a broken little girl. I don’t remember much from that night. I remember waking up, but my mom didn’t know anything. I was too scared to admit what I did. I saw that what I did wasn’t going to help anything, it was just going to bring pain to other people like Valerie’s death brought me. After that night, everything hit me. I was needed, I was loved, and I was wanted. I shouldn’t give up in school, I should persevere and not give up. School was the one thing I needed to focus on. I couldn’t let myself not graduate and go to college. I wanted to do my best in high school, so I went half online and half in person. It helped me a lot for those few months we had to be home. I was on top of my grades and doing my best in school. No matter what, the school came first. I learned to accept myself, I learned that grief is okay and it affects everyone differently. I want to help children see the positive side of life. I want to help children and teens see that they all matter. Being a child psychologist/mental health therapist is now my dream. Everyone matters, no matter what their age. Valerie is and always will be my motivation. If I can help save children/teens from doing what Valerie did, then I have succeeded and that is exactly what I want to do.

In a heartbeat, I’m a senior. I’m not that kid. I gave up in 9th grade. Losing those I love, and not being social affected me a lot. I lost my best friend to suicide, I was at such a low, and the last thing on my mind was school. I lost my focus on friends, family and school. I let myself fall into a deep hole, I never thought I would get out of it. During 8th grade, I lost my best friend to suicide. She was 13 and was my best friend; we did everything together. After her passing, I lost love for everything that made me think of her. I lost my love for dance, and for hanging out with people, and I lost the effort to try in school. I never let anything affect me in 8th grade, then I went into high school and that’s when her passing hit me. During my freshman year, I gave up trying. I never wanted to be at school, I never wanted to do homework or classwork. I had no motivation to do anything. I just wanted to get out of the mess and be by myself forever. I never let anyone know I was hurting; it was too hard for me. I bottled up my emotions and never let anything show. Talking to people about her death broke my heart. Near the end of the school year when Covid was just starting, I lost hope for myself, I lost myself, I wasn’t me anymore. I was this sad girl who never talked to anyone and fell into an obsession with doing drugs and drinking. I didn’t care anymore. One night I was done. I was tired of hurting. I wanted to be with Valerie. That’s when I attempted suicide. My heart was aching from the pain I bottled up. I never talked to anyone, I never let myself cry in front of anyone. I was a broken little girl. I don’t remember much from that night. I remember waking up, but my mom didn’t know anything. I was too scared to admit what I did. I saw that what I did wasn’t going to help anything, it was just going to bring pain to other people like Valerie’s death brought me. After that night, everything hit me. I was needed, I was loved, and I was wanted. I shouldn’t give up in school, I should persevere and not give up. School was the one thing I needed to focus on. I couldn’t let myself not graduate and go to college. I wanted to do my best in high school, so I went half online and half in person. It helped me a lot for those few months we had to be home. I was on top of my grades and doing my best in school. No matter what, school came first. I learned to accept myself, I learned that grief is okay and it affects everyone differently. Valerie wanted to see me do well. I know she didn’t want me to give up because of her actions. She wanted me to keep going and not give up. To this day, I miss her every day, but she wants what’s best for me. Every day I choose to make her proud. I do my very best in school, I try my best to make time for family and friends. No matter what I’m doing or where I am, I will always be thinking of her; she is a reminder to always do my best in everything, no matter what.

My post-secondary institution goals after high school is I'm reaching for a bachelor's in child Psychology and a minor in English education. My biggest goal to achieve is just to be there for kids and teenagers. In 7th grade my best friend committed suicide after everything had happened I saw how overlooked teenage and kids' mental health was. I saw that nobody cared unless you told them everything that happened in your life. That's when I truly understood that child and teenage mental health is overlooked. Adults tend to think that kids and teenagers have it easy just because they aren't paying bills, and they don't have kids to take care of. I think that adults are beyond wrong when they say that. Being a teenager in today's world isn't what it was like when my parents and my friends' parents went to school. In today's age, we have kids that are petrified to go to school. Some kids go to school that are too scared to go to the bathroom and wait till they get home to go pee. At our school, we also don't have doors on the bathrooms by losing that privilege because there have been many fights and many students with drugs in the bathroom. It's heartbreaking seeing what our day and age have become at school. I go to a big high school with around 2,500 students and teachers. At my school, it is a normal thing to see cops in the hallways. It is normal to see a fight and have to physically step over the kids fighting. The fights lead to kids having seizures, leaving blood all over the floor, blacking out and fainting. It's sad knowing that many teenagers have to go to a school like this, but the change from generation to generation is huge. I can't imagine what high school is going to be like for my kids knowing what it is today. I want to be the change, and I want to help. No student should have to be scared to go to school. We should have fun and be in a safe place, but today's world is different. Seeing how many kids we have lost at our high school to suicide is heart-rending. I want to see change, I want to be the change, and I will be the change. I want to be there for kids when nobody is there for them, I want people to know I'm here, I'm listening, and I care.”

My post-secondary institution goals after high school is I'm reaching for a bachelor's in child Psychology and a minor in English education. My biggest goal to achieve is just to be there for kids and teenagers. In 7th grade my best friend committed suicide after everything had happened I saw how overlooked teenage and kids' mental health was. I saw that nobody cared unless you told them everything that happened in your life. That's when I truly understood that child and teenage mental health is overlooked. Adults tend to think that kids and teenagers have it easy just because they aren't paying bills, and they don't have kids to take care of. I think that adults are beyond wrong when they say that. Being a teenager in today's world isn't what it was like when my parents and my friends' parents went to school. In today's age, we have kids that are petrified to go to school. Some kids go to school that are too scared to go to the bathroom and wait till they get home to go pee. At our school, we also don't have doors on the bathrooms by losing that privilege because there have been many fights and many students with drugs in the bathroom. It's heartbreaking seeing what our day and age have become at school. I go to a big high school with around 2,500 students and teachers. At my school, it is a normal thing to see cops in the hallways. It is normal to see a fight and have to physically step over the kids fighting. The fights lead to kids having seizures, leaving blood all over the floor, blacking out and fainting. It's sad knowing that many teenagers have to go to a school like this, but the change from generation to generation is huge. I can't imagine what high school is going to be like for my kids knowing what it is today. I want to be the change, and I want to help. No student should have to be scared to go to school. We should have fun and be in a safe place, but today's world is different. Seeing how many kids we have lost at our high school to suicide is heart-rending. I want to see change, I want to be the change, and I will be the change. I want to be there for kids when nobody is there for them, I want people to know I'm here, I'm listening, and I care.

In a heartbeat. I want to become a child psychologist and/or a crisis counselor for the youth. I want to be someone whose children want & need to talk to. Children and teen mental health has been so overlooked in the last few years. Having an adult that will listen and understand is so important in our day and age. Having someone that has lived through the loss is important. I feel as children and teens get overlooked or pushed aside when it comes to mental health. Psychology is a field of medicine that gets pursued but not in the direction where it helps children. I want to become that person. I'd love to be able to help children and teens in crisis. I want to be that person they can rely on and talk to. My goal in life is to become a child psychologist and/or a children's mental health counselor. My best friend took her life when we were just 13 and I had no idea she even felt that way. I want to pursue this career to help those children and teens that believe they don't have any other choice. I want to be able to give them a person to talk to and a person who will listen to them when they are feeling discouraged. I believe from my experience that this is the path I am meant to take in my life. If Valerie had a professional to talk to, someone she could confide in, maybe she would never have taken her life. We don't know because it's already done. I don't want to see other children or teens have to go through what I did. Losing Valerie was a living nightmare for so long. If they do, then I want to help them through their tough time. It took me a long time to find the right person to talk with before I was able to deal with all the feelings I had. I want to be that person they open up to and feel comfortable talking to. I want to and hope to make a change in the life of a child. Whether it be a child in crisis or one in depression. At 11 years old I was diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder. A few years later, I lost my childhood home to a house fire and I lost my best friend to suicide. I not only still had GAD but I was then diagnosed with borderline PTSD. I have survived testing anxiety, and social anxiety and recovered from PTSD. It's been a challenge but I've preserved. Our youth today and tomorrow need someone that has had their experiences to feel comfortable and open up to talk. This scholarship will help me move toward my goal in child psychology and mental health.

In a heartbeat. I want to become a child psychologist and/or a crisis counselor for the youth. I want to be someone whose children want & need to talk to. Children and teen mental health has been so overlooked in the last few years. Having an adult that will listen and understand is so important in our day and age. Having someone that has lived through the loss is important. I feel as children and teens get overlooked or pushed aside when it comes to mental health. Psychology is a field of medicine that gets pursued but not in the direction where it helps children. I want to become that person. I'd love to be able to help children and teens in crisis. I want to be that person they can rely on and talk to. My goal in life is to become a child psychologist and/or a children's mental health counselor. My best friend took her life when we were just 13 and I had no idea she even felt that way. I want to pursue this career to help those children and teens that believe they don't have any other choice. I want to be able to give them a person to talk to and a person who will listen to them when they are feeling discouraged. I believe from my experience that this is the path I am meant to take in my life. If Valerie had a professional to talk to, someone she could confide in, maybe she would never have taken her life. We don't know because it's already done. I don't want to see other children or teens have to go through what I did. Losing Valerie was a living nightmare for so long. If they do, then I want to help them through their tough time. It took me a long time to find the right person to talk with before I was able to deal with all the feelings I had. I want to be that person they open up to and feel comfortable talking to. I want to and hope to make a change in the life of a child. Whether it be a child in crisis or one in depression. At 11 years old I was diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder. A few years later, I lost my childhood home to a house fire and I lost my best friend to suicide. I not only still had GAD but I was then diagnosed with borderline PTSD. I have survived testing anxiety, and social anxiety and recovered from PTSD. It's been a challenge but I've preserved. Our youth today and tomorrow need someone that has had their experiences to feel comfortable and open up to talk. This scholarship will help me move toward my goal in child psychology and mental health.

I feel like the best quality I have is being able to talk with people when I need to. I can talk with teachers, strangers, my parent's friends and my friend's parents. Knowing that I’m now able to talk to people builds my confidence, and makes me feel like a decent person. During my freshman and sophomore year, I had a hard time talking to anyone new. I was way too scared to ask any of my teachers or classmates for help. It was hard for me to make friends just because talking to new people always triggered my anxiety, and when I knew I had to talk to someone I knew I would go into a panic. As I started to get older my confidence grew up with me. Slowly over time, it started to become easier and easier to talk to people. I started asking my teachers questions and getting help with my work. I started making new friends that I would have never had the guts to talk to during my first 2 years of high school. I became happier over time knowing that I can talk to someone and hold a conversation. Over time I have also learned body language and eye contact. So when I talk to someone I know I try to hold eye contact and I've learned not to do anything with my hands because my biggest goal is to come off confident. As I grow up I have people tell me all the time I am marvelous at holding conversations and holding eye contact. I have had many parents of my friends tell them I am a good person to be around just because I know how to use my words properly. I think that learning confidence is key to being successful in life. Knowing that I’m not scared to talk to people anymore now means I will be okay in college. My biggest fear during my first 2 years of high school was “how will I be able to talk to my college professors” but being who I am today, talking to my professors is now my last worry about college. My goal is to continue to carry this characteristic on and even improve it more. I want to continue to be able to talk with people in my life and continue to hold the "marvelous" conversations I've been told I can.

In a heartbeat, I’m a senior in high school getting ready to graduate. I’m not the kid I was freshman year. I gave up on trying in 9th grade. Losing those I love, having to deal with Covid, and not being social affected me a lot. I gave up. I lost my best friend to suicide, I was at such a low, and the last thing on my mind was school after her passing. I lost my focus on friends, family and school. I let myself fall into a deep hole, I never thought I would get out of it. During the 8th grade year, I lost my best friend to suicide. She was 13 and was my best friend for years; we did everything together. After her passing, I lost love for everything that made me think of her. I lost my love for dance, and for hanging out with people, and I lost the effort to try in school. I never really let anything affect me in 8th grade, then I went into high school and that’s when her passing hit me. During my freshman year, I gave up trying. I never wanted to be at school, I never wanted to do my homework or my classwork. I had no motivation to do anything. I just wanted to get out of the mess and be by myself forever. I never let anyone know I was hurting; it was too hard for me. I bottled up all of my emotions and never let anything show. Talking to people about her death broke my heart. Near the end of the school year when Covid was just starting, I lost all hope for myself, I lost myself, I wasn’t me anymore. I was this sad girl who never talked to anyone and fell into an obsession of doing drugs and drinking. I didn’t care anymore. One night I was done. I was tired of hurting. I wanted to be with Valerie again. That’s when I attempted suicide. My heart was aching from all the pain I bottled up. I never talked to anyone, I never let myself cry in front of anyone. I was a broken little girl. I don’t remember much from that night. I remember waking up, but my mom didn’t know anything. I was too scared to admit what I did. I saw that what I did wasn’t going to help anything, it was just going to bring pain on other people like Valerie’s death brought me. After that night, everything finally hit me. I was needed, I was loved and I was wanted. I shouldn’t give up in school, I should persevere and not give up. The school was the one thing that I needed to focus on. I couldn’t let myself not graduate and go to college. I wanted to do my best in high school, so I went half online and half in person. It helped me a lot for those few months we had to be home from school. I was on top of my grades and doing my best in school. No matter what, school always came first. I learned to accept myself, I learned that grief is okay and it affects everyone differently. I want to help children see the positive side of life. I want to help children and teens see that they all matter. Being a child psychologist/mental health therapist is now my dream. Everyone matters, no matter what their age. Valerie is and always will be my motivation. If I can help save children/teens from doing what Valerie did, then I have succeeded and that is exactly what I want to do.

In a heartbeat, I’m a senior. I’m not the kid I was freshman year. I gave up in 9th grade. Losing those I love and not being social affected me a lot. I lost my best friend to suicide, I was at such a low and the last thing on my mind was school. I lost my focus on friends, family and school. I let myself fall into a deep hole, I never thought I would get out of it. During 8th grade, I lost my best friend to suicide. She was 13 and was my best friend; we did everything together. After her passing, I lost love for everything that made me think of her. I lost my love for dance, for hanging out with people, and I lost the effort to try in school. I never let anything affect me in 8th grade, then I went into high school and that’s when her passing hit me. During my freshman year, I gave up trying. I never wanted to be at school, I never wanted to do homework or classwork. I had no motivation to do anything. I just wanted to get out of the mess and be by myself forever. I never let anyone know I was hurting; it was too hard for me. I bottled up my emotions and never let anything show. Talking to people about her death broke my heart. Near the end of the school year when Covid was just starting, I lost hope for myself, I lost myself, I wasn’t me anymore. I was this sad girl who never talked to anyone and fell into an obsession with doing drugs and drinking. I didn’t care anymore. One night I was done. I was tired of hurting. I wanted to be with Valerie. That’s when I attempted suicide. My heart was aching from the pain I bottled up. I never talked to anyone, I never let myself cry in front of anyone. I was a broken little girl. I don’t remember much from that night. I remember waking up, but my mom didn’t know anything. I was too scared to admit what I did. I saw that what I did wasn’t going to help anything, it was just going to bring pain on other people like Valerie’s death brought me. After that night, everything hit me. I was needed, I was loved and I was wanted. I shouldn’t give up in school, I should persevere and not give up. School was the one thing I needed to focus on. I couldn’t let myself not graduate and go to college. I wanted to do my best in high school, so I went half online and half in person. It helped me a lot for those few months we had to be home. I was on top of my grades and doing my best in school. No matter what, school came first. I learned to accept myself, I learned that grief is okay and it affects everyone differently. I want to help children see the positive side of life. I want to help children and teens see that they all matter. Being a child psychologist/mental health therapist is now my dream. Everyone matters, no matter what their age. Valerie is and always will be my motivation. If I can help save children/teens from doing what Valerie did, then I have succeeded and that is exactly what I want to do.

In a heartbeat. I want to become a child psychologist and/or a crisis counselor for the youth. I want to be someone that those children want & need to talk to. Children and teen mental health has been so overlooked in the last few years. Having an adult that will listen and understand is so important in our day and age. Having someone that has lived through the loss is important. I feel as children and teens get overlooked or pushed aside when it comes to mental health. Psychology is a field of medicine that gets pursued but not in the direction where it helps children. I want to become that person. I'd love to be able to help children and teens in crisis. I want to be that person they can rely on and talk to. My goal in life is to become a child psychologist and/or a children's mental health counselor. My best friend took her life when we were just 13 and I had no idea she even felt that way. I want to pursue this career to help those children and teens that believe they don't have any other choice. I want to be able to give them a person to talk to and a person who will listen to them when they are feeling discouraged. I believe with my past experience that this is the path I am meant to take in my life. If Valerie had a professional to talk to, someone she could confide in, maybe she would never have taken her life. We don't know because it's already done. I don't want to see other children or teens have to go through what I did. Losing Valerie was a living nightmare for so long. If they do, then I want to help them through their tough time. It took me a long time to find the right person to talk with before I was able to deal with all the feelings I had. I want to be that person they open up to and feel comfortable talking to. I want to and hope to make a change in the life of a child. Whether it be a child in crisis or one in depression. At 11 years old I was diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder. A few years later, I lost my childhood home to a house fire and I lost my best friend to suicide. I not only still had GAD but I was then diagnosed with borderline PTSD. I have survived testing anxiety and social anxiety and recovered from PTSD. It's been a challenge but I've preserved. Our youth today and tomorrow need someone that has had their experiences to feel comfortable and open up to talk. This scholarship will help me move toward my goal in child psychology and mental health.

Long, beautiful, luxurious, thick blonde hair that any little girl would love to have! My favorite Disney character would definitely have to be Repunzel. She is an angel from heaven. A kind soul that wants to help everyone. She has beautifully taken care of her long hair and uses it for good. Letting people swing or climb on it mainly. But it heals people which is a huge part of her character trait. She continues to grow throughout her movie and maintains a strong yet soft personality. Always singing songs and skipping around, she knows her inner worth and never questions it. After doing much for true love, her ‘mother’ cuts her hair, yet she still maintains her confident self after she heals Flynn from a teardrop. True love was always there for her no matter what she looked like, and no matter what she did and didn’t have. She found her true family and found what love truly meant. She continued to find herself more and more every day after she found out she was the lost princess. Throughout the whole movie, she always had her head held high. I liked that she always stayed true to herself no matter what the situation she was in, she never bailed out of everything nor was she ever scared to try something new if she was faced with it. I think it is such an amazing and beautiful story to put out for the world to see. Repunzel is a great role model for young and older girls alike. Always joyful and tries to never let anyone around her down, even her evil "mother". It teaches a lesson for young girls and women to always stay true to themselves and be kind to others. I think that's a very important life lesson for everyone to learn.

I have never had a dog that I could call mine growing up, but I did and still do have a cat. Growing up I have always had a cat that’s mine. About 2 years ago we got my best friend, Blaze. Blaze is the sweetest cat I could have ever asked for. He is truly my best friend. Blaze is a Flame Point Siamese, which means he has orange or red points instead of the typical blue or brown most Siamese have. We got him as a kitten for my mom, but long story short, Blaze ended up choosing me to be his human. I have Blaze filed as an Emotional Support Animal because I don’t think I would be here today without him, but I really think I am his Emotional Support Human. He does not like it when I’m not home and always cries when I leave without him. He is truly one cat that you don’t want to leave alone. Blaze is definitely the most talkative cat I have ever had or met. It’s nice because sometimes we just have conversations. He never fails to give me the wrong advice. And he always listens. I got Blaze during the Covid shutdown. So he’s a Covid kitty. I have seen many videos on Covid animals and many of them are the same. Most Covid animals have separation anxiety and never want to be away from their person. That’s how Blaze is. He is the type of cat I can take on a car ride and not have to worry about him freaking out. He is the type of cat that I take in the drive-thru. I have done this many times, and I always get his cup of milk with no ice or a lid of a cup with whipped cream, like a "pup cup" but for my cat. People love him when I take him through the drive-thru, they usually have never seen anything like it before. Many people in this world don’t like cats, and I understand that some people's opinions are wrong. But I have never invited someone over that doesn’t like Blaze. He’s a sweet, talkative, cuddly cat that everyone likes. He is the type of cat everyone wants but can’t find. Truly a girl's best friend. The taller you are the more he likes you. Maybe that's why he chose me because I'm 5'11". Blaze is a typical cat that loves being in high places. He loves being on someones shoulders. So the taller you are the more he likes you.

In a heartbeat. I want to become a child psychologist and/or a crisis counselor for the youth. I want to be someone those children want & need to talk to. Children and teen mental health has been so overlooked in the last few years. Having an adult that will listen and understand is so important in our day and age. Having someone that has lived through the loss is important. I feel as children and teens get overlooked or pushed aside when it comes to mental health. Psychology is a field of medicine that gets pursued but not in the direction to where it helps children. I want to become that person. I'd love to be able to help children and teens in crisis. I want to be that person they can rely on and talk to. My goal in life is to become a child psychologist and/or a children's mental health counselor. My best friend took her life when we were just 13 and I had no idea she even felt that way. I want to pursue this career to help those children and teens that believe they don't have any other choice. I want to be able to give them a person to talk to and a person who will listen to them when they are feeling discouraged. I believe with my past experience that this is the path I am meant to take in my life. If Valerie had a professional to talk to, someone she could confide in, maybe she would never have taken her life. We don't know because it's already done. I don't want to see other children or teens have to go through what I did. Losing Valerie was a living nightmare for so long. If they do, then I want to help them through their tough time. It took me a long time to find the right person to talk with before I was able to deal with all the feelings I had. I want to be that person they open up to and feel comfortable talking to. I want to and hope to make a change in the life of a child. Whether it be a child in crisis or one in depression. At 11 years old I was diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder. A few years later, I lost my childhood home to a house fire and I lost my best friend to suicide. I not only still had GAD but I was then diagnosed with borderline PTSD. I have survived testing anxiety, social anxiety and recovered from PTSD. It's been a challenge but I've preserved. Our youth today and tomorrow needs someone that has had their experiences to feel comfortable and open up to talk. This scholarship will help me move toward my goal in child psychology and mental health.

In a heartbeat. I want to become a child psychologist and/or a crisis counselor for the youth. I want to be someone those children want & need to talk to. Children and teen mental health has been so overlooked in the last few years. Having an adult that will listen and understand is so important in our day and age. Having someone that has lived through the loss is important. I feel as children and teens get overlooked or pushed aside when it comes to mental health. Psychology is a field of medicine that gets pursued but not in the direction to where it helps children. I want to become that person. I'd love to be able to help children and teens in crisis. I want to be that person they can rely on and talk to. My goal in life is to become a child psychologist and/or a children's mental health counselor. My best friend took her life when we were just 13 and I had no idea she even felt that way. I want to pursue this career to help those children and teens that believe they don't have any other choice. I want to be able to give them a person to talk to and a person who will listen to them when they are feeling discouraged. I believe with my past experience that this is the path I am meant to take in my life. If Valerie had a professional to talk to, someone she could confide in, maybe she would never have taken her life. We don't know because it's already done. I don't want to see other children or teens have to go through what I did. Losing Valerie was a living nightmare for so long. If they do, then I want to help them through their tough time. It took me a long time to find the right person to talk with before I was able to deal with all the feelings I had. I want to be that person they open up to and feel comfortable talking to. I want to and hope to make a change in the life of a child. Whether it be a child in crisis or one in depression. At 11 years old I was diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder. A few years later, I lost my childhood home to a house fire and I lost my best friend to suicide. I not only still had GAD but I was then diagnosed with borderline PTSD. I have survived testing anxiety, social anxiety and recovered from PTSD. It's been a challenge but I've preserved. Our youth today and tomorrow needs someone that has had their experiences to feel comfortable and open up to talk. This scholarship will help me move toward my goal in child psychology and mental health.

In a heartbeat, I’m a senior in high school getting ready to graduate. I’m not the kid I was freshman year. I gave up on trying in 9th grade. Losing those I love, having to deal with Covid, and not being social affected me a lot. I gave up. I lost my best friend to suicide, I was at such a low, the last thing on my mind was school after her passing. I lost my focus on friends, family and school. I let myself fall into a deep hole, I never thought I would get out of it. During 8th grade year, I lost my best friend to suicide. She was 13 and was my best friend for years; we did everything together. After her passing, I lost love for everything that made me think of her. I lost love for dance, for hanging out with people, and I lost the effort to try in school. I never really let anything affect me in 8th grade, then I went into high school and that’s when her passing really hit me. My freshman year I gave up trying. I never wanted to be at school, I never wanted to do my homework or my class work. I had no motivation to do anything. I just wanted to get out of the mess and be by myself forever. I never let anyone know I was hurting; it was too hard for me. I bottled up all of my emotions and never let anything show. Talking to people about her death broke my heart. Near the end of the school year when Covid was just starting, I lost all hope for myself, I lost myself, I wasn’t me anymore. I was this sad girl who never talked to anyone and fell into an obsession of doing drugs and drinking. I didn’t care anymore. One night I was done. I was tired of hurting. I wanted to be with Valerie again. That’s when I attempted suicide. My heart was aching from all the pain I bottled up. I never talked to anyone, I never let myself cry in front of anyone. I was a broken little girl. I don’t remember much from that night. I remember waking up, but my mom didn’t know anything. I was too scared to admit what I did. I saw that what I did wasn’t going to help anything, it was just going to bring the pain on other people like Valerie’s death brought me. After that night, everything finally hit me. I was needed, I was loved and I was wanted. I shouldn’t give up in school, I should persevere and not five up. School was the one thing that I needed to focus on. I couldn’t let myself not graduate and go to college. I wanted to do my best in high school, so I went half online and half in person. It helped me a lot for those few months we had to be home for school. I was on top of my grades and doing my best in school. No matter what, school always came first. I learned to accept myself, I learned that grief is okay and it affects everyone differently. Valerie wanted to see me do well. I know she didn’t want me to give up because of her actions. She wanted me to keep going and not give up. To this day, I miss her everyday, but she wants what’s best for me. So, everyday I choose to make her proud. I do my very best in school, I try my best to make time for family and friends. No matter what I’m doing or where I am, I will always be thinking of her; she is a reminder to always do my best in everything, no matter what. I want to help children see the positive side of life. I want to help children and teens see that they all matter. Being a child psychologist/mental health therapist is now my dream. Everyone matters, no matter what their age. Valerie is and always will be my motivation. If I can help save children/teens from doing what Valerie did, then I have succeeded and that is exactly what I want to do.

In a heartbeat, I’m a senior. I’m not the kid I was freshman year. I gave up in 9th grade. Losing those I love, not being social affected me a lot. I lost my best friend to suicide, I was at such a low, the last thing on my mind was school. I lost my focus on friends, family and school. I let myself fall into a deep hole, I never thought I would get out of it. During 8th grade, I lost my best friend to suicide. She was 13 and was my best friend; we did everything together. After her passing, I lost love for everything that made me think of her. I lost love for dance, for hanging out with people, and I lost the effort to try in school. I never let anything affect me in 8th grade, then I went into high school and that’s when her passing hit me. My freshman year I gave up trying. I never wanted to be at school, I never wanted to do homework or class work. I had no motivation to do anything. I just wanted to get out of the mess and be by myself forever. I never let anyone know I was hurting; it was too hard for me. I bottled up my emotions and never let anything show. Talking to people about her death broke my heart. Near the end of the school year when Covid was just starting, I lost hope for myself, I lost myself, I wasn’t me anymore. I was this sad girl who never talked to anyone and fell into an obsession of doing drugs and drinking. I didn’t care anymore. One night I was done. I was tired of hurting. I wanted to be with Valerie. That’s when I attempted suicide. My heart was aching from the pain I bottled up. I never talked to anyone, I never let myself cry in front of anyone. I was a broken little girl. I don’t remember much from that night. I remember waking up, but my mom didn’t know anything. I was too scared to admit what I did. I saw that what I did wasn’t going to help anything, it was just going to bring the pain on other people like Valerie’s death brought me. After that night, everything hit me. I was needed, I was loved, I was wanted. I shouldn’t give up in school, I should persevere and not give up. School was the one thing I needed to focus on. I couldn’t let myself not graduate and go to college. I wanted to do my best in high school, so I went half online and half in person. It helped me a lot for those few months we had to be home. I was on top of my grades and doing my best in school. No matter what, school came first. I learned to accept myself, I learned that grief is okay and it affects everyone differently. I want to help children see the positive side of life. I want to help children and teens see that they all matter. Being a child psychologist/mental health therapist is now my dream. Everyone matters, no matter what their age. Valerie is and always will be my motivation. If I can help save children/teens from doing what Valerie did, then I have succeeded and that is exactly what I want to do.

In a heartbeat, I’m a senior. I’m not the kid I was freshman year. I gave up in 9th grade. Losing those I love, not being social affected me a lot. I lost my best friend to suicide, I was at such a low, the last thing on my mind was school. I lost my focus on friends, family and school. I let myself fall into a deep hole, I never thought I would get out of it. During 8th grade, I lost my best friend to suicide. She was 13 and was my best friend; we did everything together. After her passing, I lost love for everything that made me think of her. I lost love for dance, for hanging out with people, and I lost the effort to try in school. I never let anything affect me in 8th grade, then I went into high school and that’s when her passing hit me. My freshman year I gave up trying. I never wanted to be at school, I never wanted to do homework or class work. I had no motivation to do anything. I just wanted to get out of the mess and be by myself forever. I never let anyone know I was hurting; it was too hard for me. I bottled up my emotions and never let anything show. Talking to people about her death broke my heart. Near the end of the school year when Covid was just starting, I lost hope for myself, I lost myself, I wasn’t me anymore. I was this sad girl who never talked to anyone and fell into an obsession of doing drugs and drinking. I didn’t care anymore. One night I was done. I was tired of hurting. I wanted to be with Valerie. That’s when I attempted suicide. My heart was aching from the pain I bottled up. I never talked to anyone, I never let myself cry in front of anyone. I was a broken little girl. I don’t remember much from that night. I remember waking up, but my mom didn’t know anything. I was too scared to admit what I did. I saw that what I did wasn’t going to help anything, it was just going to bring the pain on other people like Valerie’s death brought me. After that night, everything hit me. I was needed, I was loved, I was wanted. I shouldn’t give up in school, I should persevere and not give up. School was the one thing I needed to focus on. I couldn’t let myself not graduate and go to college. I wanted to do my best in high school, so I went half online and half in person. It helped me a lot for those few months we had to be home. I was on top of my grades and doing my best in school. No matter what, school came first. I learned to accept myself, I learned that grief is okay and it affects everyone differently. I want to help children see the positive side of life. I want to help children and teens see that they all matter. Being a child psychologist/mental health therapist is now my dream. Everyone matters, no matter what their age. Valerie is and always will be my motivation. If I can help save children/teens from doing what Valerie did, then I have succeeded and that is exactly what I want to do.

In a heartbeat, I’m a senior in high school getting ready to graduate. I’m not the kid I was freshman year. I gave up on trying in 9th grade. Losing those I love, having to deal with Covid, and not being social affected me a lot. I gave up. I lost my best friend to suicide, I was at such a low, the last thing on my mind was school after her passing. I lost my focus on friends, family and school. I let myself fall into a deep hole, I never thought I would get out of it. During 8th grade year, I lost my best friend to suicide. She was 13 and was my best friend for years; we did everything together. After her passing, I lost love for everything that made me think of her. I lost love for dance, for hanging out with people, and I lost the effort to try in schoo. I never really let anything affect me in 8th grade, then I went into high school and that’s when her passing really hit me. My freshman year I gave up trying. I never wanted to be at school, I never wanted to do my homework or my class work. I had no motivation to do anything. I just wanted to get out of the mess and be by myself forever. I never let anyone know I was hurting; it was too hard for me. I bottled up all of my emotions and never let anything show. Talking to people about her death broke my heart. Near the end of the school year when Covid was just starting, I lost all hope for myself, I lost myself, I wasn’t me anymore. I was this sad girl who never talked to anyone and fell into an obsession of doing drugs and drinking. I didn’t care anymore. One night I was done. I was tired of hurting. I wanted to be with Valerie again. That’s when I attempted suicide. My heart was aching from all the pain I bottled up. I never talked to anyone, I never let myself cry in front of anyone. I was a broken little girl. I don’t remember much from that night. I remember waking up, but my mom didn’t know anything. I was too scared to admit what I did. I saw that what I did wasn’t going to help anything, it was just going to bring the pain on other people like Valerie’s death brought me. After that night, everything finally hit me. I was needed, I was loved and I was wanted. I shouldn’t give up in school, I should persevere and not five up. School was the one thing that I needed to focus on. I couldn’t let myself not graduate and go to college. I wanted to do my best in high school, so I went half online and half in person. It helped me a lot for those few months we had to be home for school. I was on top of my grades and doing my best in school. No matter what, school always came first. I learned to accept myself, I learned that grief is okay and it affects everyone differently. Valerie wanted to see me do well. I know she didn’t want me to give up because of her actions. She wanted me to keep going and not give up. To this day, I miss her everyday, but she wants what’s best for me. So, everyday I choose to make her proud. I do my very best in school, I try my best to make time for family and friends. No matter what I’mm doing or where I am, I will always be thinking of her; she is a reminder to always do my best in everything, no matter what.

In a heartbeat, I’m a senior in high school getting ready to graduate. I’m not the kid I was freshman year. I gave up on trying in 9th grade. Losing those I love, having to deal with Covid, and not being social affected me a lot. I gave up. I lost my best friend to suicide, I was at such a low, the last thing on my mind was school after her passing. I lost my focus on friends, family and school. I let myself fall into a deep hole, I never thought I would get out of it. During 8th grade year, I lost my best friend to suicide. She was 13 and was my best friend for years; we did everything together. After her passing, I lost love for everything that made me think of her. I lost love for dance, for hanging out with people, and I lost the effort to try in school. I never really let anything affect me in 8th grade, then I went into high school and that’s when her passing really hit me. I want to become a child psychologist and/or a crisis counselor for the youth. I want to be someone those children want & need to talk to. Children's mental health has been so overlooked in the last few years. Having an adult that will listen and understand is so important in our day and age. I feel as children get overlooked or pushed aside when it comes to mental health. Psychology is a field of medicine that gets pursued but not in the direction to where it helps children. I want to become that person. I'd love to be able to help children and teens in crisis. My goal in life is to become a child psychologist and/or a children's mental health counselor. My best friend took her life when we were just 13 and I had no idea she even felt that way. I want to pursue this career to help those children that believe they don't have any other choice. I want to be able to give them a person to talk to and a person who will listen to them when they are feeling discouraged. I believe with my past experience that this is the path I am meant to take in my life. If Valerie had someone to talk to maybe she would never have taken her life. We don't know because it's already done. I don't want to see other children have to go through what I did. If they do, then I want to help them through their tough time. It took me a long time to find the right person to talk with before I was able to deal with all the feelings I had. I want to be that person they open up to and feel comfortable talking to. I want to and hope to make a change in the life of a child. Whether it be a child in crisis or one in depression.

In a heartbeat, I’m a senior in high school getting ready to graduate. I’m not the kid I was freshman year. I gave up on trying in 9th grade. Losing those I love, having to deal with Covid, and not being social affected me a lot. I gave up. I lost my best friend to suicide, I was at such a low, the last thing on my mind was school after her passing. I lost my focus on friends, family and school. I let myself fall into a deep hole, I never thought I would get out of it. During 8th grade year, I lost my best friend to suicide. She was 13 and was my best friend for years; we did everything together. After her passing, I lost love for everything that made me think of her. I lost love for dance, for hanging out with people, and I lost the effort to try in schoo. I never really let anything affect me in 8th grade, then I went into high school and that’s when her passing really hit me. My freshman year I gave up trying. I never wanted to be at school, I never wanted to do my homework or my class work. I had no motivation to do anything. I just wanted to get out of the mess and be by myself forever. I never let anyone know I was hurting; it was too hard for me. I bottled up all of my emotions and never let anything show. Talking to people about her death broke my heart. Near the end of the school year when Covid was just starting, I lost all hope for myself, I lost myself, I wasn’t me anymore. I was this sad girl who never talked to anyone and fell into an obsession of doing drugs and drinking. I didn’t care anymore. One night I was done. I was tired of hurting. I wanted to be with Valerie again. That’s when I attempted suicide. My heart was aching from all the pain I bottled up. I never talked to anyone, I never let myself cry in front of anyone. I was a broken little girl. I don’t remember much from that night. I remember waking up, but my mom didn’t know anything. I was too scared to admit what I did. I saw that what I did wasn’t going to help anything, it was just going to bring the pain on other people like Valerie’s death brought me. After that night, everything finally hit me. I was needed, I was loved and I was wanted. I shouldn’t give up in school, I should persevere and not five up. School was the one thing that I needed to focus on. I couldn’t let myself not graduate and go to college. I wanted to do my best in high school, so I went half online and half in person. It helped me a lot for those few months we had to be home for school. I was on top of my grades and doing my best in school. No matter what, school always came first. I learned to accept myself, I learned that grief is okay and it affects everyone differently. Valerie wanted to see me do well. I know she didn’t want me to give up because of her actions. She wanted me to keep going and not give up. To this day, I miss her everyday, but she wants what’s best for me. So, everyday I choose to make her proud. I do my very best in school, I try my best to make time for family and friends. No matter what I’mm doing or where I am, I will always be thinking of her; she is a reminder to always do my best in everything, no matter what.

In a heartbeat, I’m a senior. I’m not the kid I was freshman year. I gave up in 9th grade. Losing those I love, not being social affected me a lot. I lost my best friend to suicide, I was at such a low, the last thing on my mind was school. I lost my focus on friends, family and school. I let myself fall into a deep hole, I never thought I would get out of it. During 8th grade, I lost my best friend to suicide. She was 13 and was my best friend; we did everything together. After her passing, I lost love for everything that made me think of her. I lost love for dance, for hanging out with people, and I lost the effort to try in school. I never let anything affect me in 8th grade, then I went into high school and that’s when her passing hit me. My freshman year I gave up trying. I never wanted to be at school, I never wanted to do homework or class work. I had no motivation to do anything. I just wanted to get out of the mess and be by myself forever. I never let anyone know I was hurting; it was too hard for me. I bottled up my emotions and never let anything show. Talking to people about her death broke my heart. Near the end of the school year when Covid was just starting, I lost hope for myself, I lost myself, I wasn’t me anymore. I was this sad girl who never talked to anyone and fell into an obsession of doing drugs and drinking. I didn’t care anymore. One night I was done. I was tired of hurting. I wanted to be with Valerie. That’s when I attempted suicide. My heart was aching from the pain I bottled up. I never talked to anyone, I never let myself cry in front of anyone. I was a broken little girl. I don’t remember much from that night. I remember waking up, but my mom didn’t know anything. I was too scared to admit what I did. I saw that what I did wasn’t going to help anything, it was just going to bring the pain on other people like Valerie’s death brought me. After that night, everything hit me. I was needed, I was loved, I was wanted. I shouldn’t give up in school, I should persevere and not give up. School was the one thing I needed to focus on. I couldn’t let myself not graduate and go to college. I wanted to do my best in high school, so I went half online and half in person. It helped me a lot for those few months we had to be home. I was on top of my grades and doing my best in school. No matter what, school came first. I learned to accept myself, I learned that grief is okay and it affects everyone differently. Valerie wanted to see me do well. I know she didn’t want me to give up because of her actions. She wanted me to keep going and not give up. To this day, I miss her everyday, but she wants what’s best for me. So, everyday I choose to make her proud. I do my very best in school, I try my best to make time for family and friends. No matter what I’m doing or where I am, I will always be thinking of her; she is a reminder to always do my best in everything, no matter what.

In a heartbeat, I’m a senior. I’m not the kid I was freshman year. I gave up in 9th grade. Losing those I love, not being social affected me a lot. I lost my best friend to suicide, I was at such a low, the last thing on my mind was school. I lost my focus on friends, family and school. I let myself fall into a deep hole, I never thought I would get out of it. During 8th grade, I lost my best friend to suicide. She was 13 and was my best friend; we did everything together. After her passing, I lost love for everything that made me think of her. I lost love for dance, for hanging out with people, and I lost the effort to try in school. I never let anything affect me in 8th grade, then I went into high school and that’s when her passing hit me. My freshman year I gave up trying. I never wanted to be at school, I never wanted to do homework or class work. I had no motivation to do anything. I just wanted to get out of the mess and be by myself forever. I never let anyone know I was hurting; it was too hard for me. I bottled up my emotions and never let anything show. Talking to people about her death broke my heart. Near the end of the school year when Covid was just starting, I lost hope for myself, I lost myself, I wasn’t me anymore. I was this sad girl who never talked to anyone and fell into an obsession of doing drugs and drinking. I didn’t care anymore. One night I was done. I was tired of hurting. I wanted to be with Valerie. That’s when I attempted suicide. My heart was aching from the pain I bottled up. I never talked to anyone, I never let myself cry in front of anyone. I was a broken little girl. I don’t remember much from that night. I remember waking up, but my mom didn’t know anything. I was too scared to admit what I did. I saw that what I did wasn’t going to help anything, it was just going to bring the pain on other people like Valerie’s death brought me. After that night, everything hit me. I was needed, I was loved, I was wanted. I shouldn’t give up in school, I should persevere and not give up. School was the one thing I needed to focus on. I couldn’t let myself not graduate and go to college. I wanted to do my best in high school, so I went half online and half in person. It helped me a lot for those few months we had to be home. I was on top of my grades and doing my best in school. No matter what, school came first. I learned to accept myself, I learned that grief is okay and it affects everyone differently. Valerie wanted to see me do well. I know she didn’t want me to give up because of her actions. She wanted me to keep going and not give up. To this day, I miss her everyday, but she wants what’s best for me. So, everyday I choose to make her proud. I do my very best in school, I try my best to make time for family and friends. No matter what I’mm doing or where I am, I will always be thinking of her; she is a reminder to always do my best in everything, no matter what.

In a heartbeat, I’m a senior. I’m not the kid I was freshman year. I gave up in 9th grade. Losing those I love, not being social affected me a lot. I lost my best friend to suicide, I was at such a low, the last thing on my mind was school. I lost my focus on friends, family and school. I let myself fall into a deep hole, I never thought I would get out of it. During 8th grade, I lost my best friend to suicide. She was 13 and was my best friend; we did everything together. After her passing, I lost love for everything that made me think of her. I lost love for dance, for hanging out with people, and I lost the effort to try in school. I never let anything affect me in 8th grade, then I went into high school and that’s when her passing hit me. My freshman year I gave up trying. I never wanted to be at school, I never wanted to do homework or class work. I had no motivation to do anything. I just wanted to get out of the mess and be by myself forever. I never let anyone know I was hurting; it was too hard for me. I bottled up my emotions and never let anything show. Talking to people about her death broke my heart. Near the end of the school year when Covid was just starting, I lost hope for myself, I lost myself, I wasn’t me anymore. I was this sad girl who never talked to anyone and fell into an obsession of doing drugs and drinking. I didn’t care anymore. One night I was done. I was tired of hurting. I wanted to be with Valerie. That’s when I attempted suicide. My heart was aching from the pain I bottled up. I never talked to anyone, I never let myself cry in front of anyone. I was a broken little girl. I don’t remember much from that night. I remember waking up, but my mom didn’t know anything. I was too scared to admit what I did. I saw that what I did wasn’t going to help anything, it was just going to bring the pain on other people like Valerie’s death brought me. After that night, everything hit me. I was needed, I was loved, I was wanted. I shouldn’t give up in school, I should persevere and not give up. School was the one thing I needed to focus on. I couldn’t let myself not graduate and go to college. I wanted to do my best in high school, so I went half online and half in person. It helped me a lot for those few months we had to be home. I was on top of my grades and doing my best in school. No matter what, school came first. I learned to accept myself, I learned that grief is okay and it affects everyone differently. Valerie wanted to see me do well. I know she didn’t want me to give up because of her actions. She wanted me to keep going and not give up. To this day, I miss her everyday, but she wants what’s best for me. So, everyday I choose to make her proud. I do my very best in school, I try my best to make time for family and friends. No matter what I’mm doing or where I am, I will always be thinking of her; she is a reminder to always do my best in everything, no matter what.

In a heartbeat, I’m a senior. I’m not the kid I was freshman year. I gave up in 9th grade. Losing those I love, not being social affected me a lot. I lost my best friend to suicide, I was at such a low, the last thing on my mind was school. I lost my focus on friends, family and school. I let myself fall into a deep hole, I never thought I would get out of it. My name is Elizabeth-Ann, but I've gone by Ellie my whole life. I'm the youngest in a large blended family. The youngest of 4 on my mom & step dad's side and the youngest of 9 on my dad & stepmom's side. I've always been the baby of the family no matter where I was. I was a competitive dancer for 10 years before I decided I wanted to concentrate more on my future. I started working with youth through the Boys & Girls Club of America and tutoring for the high school freshman Avid class during my senior year. Working with children has always been something I have enjoyed. I want to become a child psychologist and/or a crisis counselor for the youth. I want to be someone those children want & need to talk to. Children's mental health has been so overlooked in the last few years. Having an adult that will listen and understand is so important in our day and age. I feel as children get overlooked or pushed aside when it comes to mental health. Psychology is a field of medicine that gets pursued but not in the direction to where it helps children. I want to become that person. I'd love to be able to help children and teens in crisis. My goal in life is to become a child psychologist and/or a children's mental health counselor. My best friend took her life when we were just 13 and I had no idea she even felt that way. I want to pursue this career to help those children that believe they don't have any other choice. I want to be able to give them a person to talk to and a person who will listen to them when they are feeling discouraged. I believe with my past experience that this is the path I am meant to take in my life. If Valerie had someone to talk to maybe she would never have taken her life. We don't know because it's already done. I don't want to see other children have to go through what I did. If they do, then I want to help them through their tough time. It took me a long time to find the right person to talk with before I was able to deal with all the feelings I had. I want to be that person they open up to and feel comfortable talking to. I want to and hope to make a change in the life of a child. Whether it be a child in crisis or one in depression.

In a heartbeat, I’m a senior. I’m not the kid I was freshman year. I gave up in 9th grade. Losing those I love, not being social affected me a lot. I lost my best friend to suicide, I was at such a low, the last thing on my mind was school. I lost my focus on friends, family and school. I let myself fall into a deep hole, I never thought I would get out of it. During 8th grade, I lost my best friend to suicide. She was 13 and was my best friend; we did everything together. After her passing, I lost love for everything that made me think of her. I lost love for dance, for hanging out with people, and I lost the effort to try in school. I never let anything affect me in 8th grade, then I went into high school and that’s when her passing hit me. My freshman year I gave up trying. I never wanted to be at school, I never wanted to do homework or class work. I had no motivation to do anything. I just wanted to get out of the mess and be by myself forever. I never let anyone know I was hurting; it was too hard for me. I bottled up my emotions and never let anything show. Talking to people about her death broke my heart. Near the end of the school year when Covid was just starting, I lost hope for myself, I lost myself, I wasn’t me anymore. I was this sad girl who never talked to anyone and fell into an obsession of doing drugs and drinking. I didn’t care anymore. One night I was done. I was tired of hurting. I wanted to be with Valerie. That’s when I attempted suicide. My heart was aching from the pain I bottled up. I never talked to anyone, I never let myself cry in front of anyone. I was a broken little girl. I don’t remember much from that night. I remember waking up, but my mom didn’t know anything. I was too scared to admit what I did. I saw that what I did wasn’t going to help anything, it was just going to bring the pain on other people like Valerie’s death brought me. After that night, everything hit me. I was needed, I was loved, I was wanted. I shouldn’t give up in school, I should persevere and not give up. School was the one thing I needed to focus on. I couldn’t let myself not graduate and go to college. I wanted to do my best in high school, so I went half online and half in person. It helped me a lot for those few months we had to be home. I was on top of my grades and doing my best in school. No matter what, school came first. I learned to accept myself, I learned that grief is okay and it affects everyone differently. Valerie wanted to see me do well. I know she didn’t want me to give up because of her actions. She wanted me to keep going and not give up. To this day, I miss her everyday, but she wants what’s best for me. So, everyday I choose to make her proud. I do my very best in school, I try my best to make time for family and friends. No matter what I’mm doing or where I am, I will always be thinking of her; she is a reminder to always do my best in everything, no matter what.

My name is Elizabeth-Ann, but I've gone by Ellie my whole life. I'm the youngest in a large blended family. The youngest of 4 on my mom & step dad's side and the youngest of 9 on my dad & stepmom's side. I've always been the baby of the family no matter where I was at. I was a competitive dancer for 10 years before I decided I wanted to concentrate more on my future. I started working with youth through the Boys & Girls Club of America and tutoring for the high school freshman Avid class during my senior year. Working with children has always been something I have enjoyed. I want to become a child psychologist and/or a crisis counselor for the youth. I want to be someone those children want & need to talk to. Children's mental health has been so overlooked in the last few years. Having an adult that will listen and understand is so important in our day and age. I feel as children get overlooked or pushed aside when it comes to mental health. Psychology is a field of medicine that gets pursued but not in the direction to where it helps children. I want to become that person. I'd love to be able to help children and teens in crisis. My goal in life is to become a child psychologist and/or a children's mental health counselor. My best friend took her life when we were just 13 and I had no idea she even felt that way. I want to pursue this career to help those children that believe they don't have any other choice. I want to be able to give them a person to talk to and a person who will listen to them when they are feeling discouraged. I believe with my past experience that this is the path I am meant to take in my life. If Valerie had someone to talk to maybe she would never have taken her life. We don't know because it's already done. I don't want to see other children have to go through what I did. If they do, then I want to help them through their tough time. It took me a long time to find the right person to talk with before I was able to deal with all the feelings I had. I want to be that person they open up to and feel comfortable talking to. I want to and hope to make a change in the life of a child. Whether it be a child in crisis or one in depression. This scholarship will help me move toward my goal in child psychology and mental health.

My name is Elizabeth-Ann, but I've gone by Ellie my whole life. I'm the youngest in a large blended family. The youngest of 4 on my mom & step dad's side and the youngest of 9 on my dad & stepmom's side. I've always been the baby of the family no matter where I was at. I was a competitive dancer for 10 years before I decided I wanted to concentrate more on my future. I started working with youth through the Boys & Girls Club of America and tutoring for the high school freshman Avid class during my senior year. Working with children has always been something I have enjoyed. Out of all of my siblings, I have been the only one to pursue AP and Accelerated courses through high school. I want to become a child psychologist and/or a crisis counselor for the youth. I want to be someone those children want & need to talk to. Children's mental health has been so overlooked in the last few years. Having an adult that will listen and understand is so important in our day and age. I feel as children get overlooked or pushed aside when it comes to mental health. Psychology is a field of medicine that gets pursued but not in the direction to where it helps children. I want to become that person. I'd love to be able to help children and teens in crisis. My goal in life is to become a child psychologist and/or a children's mental health counselor. My best friend took her life when we were just 13 and I had no idea she even felt that way. I want to pursue this career to help those children that believe they don't have any other choice. I want to be able to give them a person to talk to and a person who will listen to them when they are feeling discouraged. I believe with my past experience that this is the path I am meant to take in my life. If Valerie had someone to talk to maybe she would never have taken her life. We don't know because it's already done. I don't want to see other children have to go through what I did. If they do, then I want to help them through their tough time. It took me a long time to find the right person to talk with before I was able to deal with all the feelings I had. I want to be that person they open up to and feel comfortable talking to. I want to and hope to make a change in the life of a child. Whether it be a child in crisis or one in depression. This scholarship will help me move toward my goal in child psychology and mental health.

My name is Elizabeth-Ann, but I've gone by Ellie my whole life. I'm the youngest in a large blended family. The youngest of 4 on my mom & step dad's side and the youngest of 9 on my dad & stepmom's side. I've always been the baby of the family no matter where I was. I was a competitive dancer for 10 years before I decided I wanted to concentrate more on my future. I started working with youth through the Boys & Girls Club of America and tutoring for the high school freshman Avid class during my senior year. Working with children has always been something I have enjoyed. I want to become a child psychologist and/or a crisis counselor for the youth. I want to be someone those children want & need to talk to. Children's mental health has been so overlooked in the last few years. Having an adult that will listen and understand is so important in our day and age. I feel as children get overlooked or pushed aside when it comes to mental health. Psychology is a field of medicine that gets pursued but not in the direction to where it helps children. I want to become that person. I'd love to be able to help children and teens in crisis. My goal in life is to become a child psychologist and/or a children's mental health counselor. My best friend took her life when we were just 13 and I had no idea she even felt that way. I want to pursue this career to help those children that believe they don't have any other choice. I want to be able to give them a person to talk to and a person who will listen to them when they are feeling discouraged. I believe with my past experience that this is the path I am meant to take in my life. If Valerie had someone to talk to maybe she would never have taken her life. We don't know because it's already done. I don't want to see other children have to go through what I did. If they do, then I want to help them through their tough time. It took me a long time to find the right person to talk with before I was able to deal with all the feelings I had. I want to be that person they open up to and feel comfortable talking to. I want to and hope to make a change in the life of a child. Whether it be a child in crisis or one in depression. This scholarship will help me move toward my goal in child psychology and mental health.