At one point during human history, a girl aged 15 would have been considered an adult. She would have been married and had kids. I was 15 when my life took a drastic turn and I started on the path to my future. My dad was a doctor for over 35 years. He had a private practice in my hometown when I was little. I grew up seeing how he treated his patients. Even though he retired after the incident I'll get to shortly, they still say he was kind, understanding, and the best doctor they ever had. I was 13 when I started to understand that my dad was positively impacting so many people in my community. Two years later, he was lying in an Emergency Room unable to sit up, walk, or speak. I can vividly remember how small my dad looked at this time. Truthfully, he was a 72-year-old Filipino that never grew past my 5'3" height, but there was something at the moment that made him seem even smaller. The day after his admission into the hospital, the exact one he had just done rounds at two days before, my dad was diagnosed with sepsis. On December 21, 2018, my dad was transferred to UPMC Hamot in Erie, Pennsylvania because my hometown hospital could not handle his severe case. Before he was septic, he had surgery on his right hand to fix a snapped tendon. The orthopedic doctors at Hamot took off his cast when he arrived and saw no sign of infection. The bacteria that was in my dad's blood entered in an unknown, unexplainable manner. It has been almost 5 years and we still have no answer as to how it happened. I sat through Christmas with my dad in the hospital watching him eat sugar cookies with chopsticks that I got him as a present. It would take him another month to get transferred home and another three weeks after that to be discharged and released to physical therapy. In a matter of two months, I saw my once-active dad go into a lucid state and recover fully. But his hand was not once what it used to be. His body had finally caught up with his age. Just right before the pandemic started, my dad retired from the one thing in life that gave him purpose. His departure started the trend of the hospital losing physicians, and we cannot keep any in town. Today, we only have two doctors and a handful of Nurse practitioners. However, one doctor will be retiring in 2024 and the other is leaving at the end of this year. I have seen what impacts a good doctor can make on their community. I have seen the good they put into people and how they can change their lives. There is a need for doctors all over the country, but I have experienced a direct need for them firsthand. I do not want to see my community suffer from a lack of helping, carrying hands like my dad's. I want to fill in his shoes to do so. This scholarship will not only help me finically, but emotionally as well. All the hard work that I put into my studies will be acknowledged, and my motivation to become a doctor will be validated. Most people in my community think I am becoming a doctor because it is all I know. I am becoming a doctor because it is the right way for me to give back to my community and my dad for all they have done.

I always thought I would end up with the person I dated in high school. In October of 2022, we had been dating for 6 years. He was my everything. Then he ended it. He said he needed time to be alone. After a month of us apart, I found out he had started dating someone else. I will never be able to put into words how angry, broken, and unloved I felt in that moment. He had made me feel like I was at fault. I had struggled with my mental health all of high school and needed him and his presence to help calm me down. He even helped me at college since we are attending the same one. After he ended what we had, I had a terrible panic attack. It was a Sunday morning when I read his text. I was already dressed for Mass. There was a fleeting moment when I did not want to step foot outside of my dorm room. However, I knew God would never give up on me and that there was going to be a light at the end of this dark tunnel. I had a blast at Mass and the breakfast social with my friends. I knew then that I would need to lean into friendships like that. In the weeks after he broke up with me, I made two of the closest friends I will ever have in my life. I knew both of them already, but because I was being more myself, they grew to love me even more. Over winter break, I needed something to distract me from not having another person to talk to or hang out with. I started exercising every day. I had also bought a guitar for my birthday that year, but I had never had the time to teach myself how to play. I have been in love with music since the age of three. I found comfort in how I was able to pick up my tenth instrument and learn it quickly. I was proud of myself. Not only did I lean into my friendships and my love of music, but I also started to pray more and more every day. I pray for myself and that I will find the person I am meant to be with, but also for my friends that they may stay with me forever and always have my back. If it was not for these three things, I would never have realized that I am (and have always been) a good, kind, genuine person. I am loyal to lose I care for and have strength in me I never knew. As one of my friends put it immediately after the breakup, "You are a strong, independent woman... somewhere in there". She is right; I am now the strong and independent woman I was meant to be.

I grew up around only one Filipino in my life. My father left the Philippines a year after my half-brother was born to start his medical residency in the United States. If he had stayed, I would have never been born. He is my only connection to the Philippines; most of his cultural knowledge is from his time there and not anything recent. I have never been because he is now elderly and cannot handle the long flight. However, I have noticed similarities between us and my half-siblings. We all have the drive to help and care for those we love and in our communities. We understand the sense of community and, as Catholics, we know that our hard work is not fruitless. I have always had this deep need to take care of people. As a girl, I was the one who ran to her friends when they fell off the monkey bars and got scratched. As a teen, I was the one who carried band-aids and pads so no one had to worry. As a college student, I have a bin stocked to the brim with band-aids, ace wraps, gauze, and ointments (just in case something happens in the dorms). This need and care were instilled in me by the physician I saw every day for 18 years. My dad taught me to care for others, not just in the physical sense, but the spiritual as well. My dad has always been on his childrens' side. No matter what we did in life, he was still proud of us. He was a strong point in our lives. Then he almost died. In December 2018, my father was transferred from our local hospital (the one he practiced at) to a city hospital for the treatment of sepsis. He had just had surgery on his right wrist, which the doctors thought was the source of the infection. When they opened up his cast, they found a clean incision and nothing else. For the next four weeks, he had blood test after blood test to see if the infection was gone. It took another three weeks for him to be recovered enough to come home and do at-home physical therapy. To this day, we still do not know how he got the bacteria into his bloodstream. My siblings and I were terrified that we would lose our father, but he has always been strong and never gave up on us. While he was in the hospital, he was not treated with the same level of care or compassion that he gave to his patients. Instead, he was brushed aside, demeaned, and treated unfairly by his colleagues (both at home and in the city). As a sixteen-year-old, this made me incredibly angry. The person who had told me my entire life to treat others with kindness and respect was not getting any in return. So, after he got better, I started to focus more on what my future would look like. I decided it needed to be filled with caring for others in a meaningful way. I decided that I would need to fill in my father's shoes. Now, I am a molecular biology major at Westminster College in Pennsylvania. I am on the Pre-Medicine track with ambitions to treat my future patients with the level and care that my father did. He was one of the most well-liked doctors in my hometown. One day, I will hold my Filipina head high, with pride on my shoulders, knowing I am carrying on a legacy and Filipino family tradition.

There is not a year that I can remember that was more challenging than 2022. This was the year that I finished my first year of college, became more involved on campus, and had my first heartbreak. Many aspects of my life changed in one year, but the one thing that stayed the same was my love and passion for music. I remember fifth grade when I chose to play the flute, which subsequently lead to me now playing around ten instruments (but not all at once). I can remember being around the age of three-years-old and singing along to the Jonas Brothers. They were my favorite band for the longest time. As a really small child, one never really understands lyrics; all one hears are nice noises and fun words. However, as an adult that has gone through the toughest year of her life, I find the words of "Hold On" to be particularly poignant. The song is not only a reminder that life goes on after a breakup ("When you love someone and they break your heart don't give up on love, have faith, restart"); it is also a reminder that life is good if one puts effort into it ("One single smile, a helping hand... It's not that hard to be a friend"). Even though this is a song from my past, it has a more meaningful message to my present and future self than I could have ever imagined. "Hold On" by the Jonas Brothers is my reminder that life will continue and I can make it a much better thing if I just keep going.

I want a life that will make my parents look back to the day I was born and say, "This will be worth it all." I want to be a successful doctor that shows care and compassion to my patients. I want a comfortable life where I can care for those I most love, plus a dog or two.

When I was 15, my dad had severe sepsis and was treated for over a month in the hospital. But he was not treated with respect. At one point, some of his doctors gave up on him. Seeing my dad suffer mentally and deteriorate physically gave me a push to the career I wanted deep down. My dad was one of my small town's best and most beloved doctors before he retired. We would run into people at the store, a restaurant, or out of town that had to tell me what a fantastic person my dad was. I grew up wanting to emulate that gratitude for my skills. He was treated with respect wherever he went; until he was too sick to speak, feed himself, or move. I saw him deteriorate from a healthy 73-year-old into a man I hardly recognized upon entering his hospital room. When he did not get the care he deserved and ultimately needed, I began to think about what I could do for others in the same situation as my dad. After months of thought and discussion with my mom, I decided that medical school would be the best way for me to take care of others. I had my dad as a model for what stupendous things a doctor can do for someone, and I wanted to make him proud. In 2021, I decided to go to Westminster College in New Wilmington, Pennsylvania for a degree in Molecular Biology. This area of biology is where a vast part of cancer research is produced. Though I feel I could do good in the research field, I find that being able to talk to patients is the best way to care for them. Listening to others' genuine concerns is another concept my dad taught me. Scholarships diminish financial burdens, but they also encourage the receivers. By receiving this scholarship, I would show my family that other people want the world to be a more kind and compassionate place and that they believe in me to do so. Getting scholarships such as this one gives me hope that people see me as a capable woman who will change the world. In a world where patients are viewed as money or ailments, I want to see them as whole human beings. My sorority's motto is "Love, Honor, Truth". My hope for the future is to love those around me, honor them and my family with respect, and show the world the truth of kindness.

One very interesting thing about me, specifically my name, is that my initials are the same as my dad's. We are both EFH; this is only a tiny part of why I chose to go into STEM and the medical field. My dad was born in the Philipines in 1946, making him part of a generation to see the impact of World II and everything after. He was brought up in a strong Roman Catholic household and went to a Jesuit school for most of his life. He attended undergraduate school and medical school in his home country. He had a younger brother but, after my dad left the Philippines around 1974 to immigrate to America, they never saw each other much. My uncle was not keen on Americans and didn't like them very much. However, he and my dad would talk on the phone occasionally to catch up. I still remember when they would take and I would hear Tagalog, Spanish, and English in the same sentence; as a 7-year-old, this was a mindblowing thing. Like my dad's upbringing, my half-siblings had someone to grow up with. My two brothers and sister are about 29-25 years older than I am. My dad raised them similar to his upbringing. They went to Mass, Catholic schools, and had time together. My siblings all graduated from a high school in Scranton. After they graduated was when my dad was offered a job in my hometown of Kane. He stayed in town during the week and traveled back to Scranton on the weekends. During this time, he met my mom. Fast forward to January of 2033 and I'm born. March of that year, I was baptized at the local Roman Catholic church, and 18 years later confirmed with the name Luke (after the apostle). I was raised to believe in God, His love, and His power. He is good, and He has a plan for everyone. Included in my plan was my dad becoming extremely ill from sepsis in December of 2018, just one month after his brother died. They hadn't spoken in years. My dad was taken from our small community hospital to a larger city facility two hours away on December 22 and stayed there until after the new year. During this grief-filled time, I also experienced some injustice. My dad's doctors and nurses could not find the source of his sepsis, would not treat him or my mother with much respect, and essentially gave up on him for a while. He eventually recovered and was taken back to our hospital and recovered by April of 2019. In the months that followed my dad's illness, I realized how much I liked the medical field and wanted to help take care of people. Some doctors I have seen do not treat people like humans; they treat them like money. My dad never did that. He was raised Catholic and used his principles to guide his practice. I have heard stories throughout my life of how my dad was kind, caring, and understanding. I have heard of the wonders he had done for people. This is his legacy. He was an amazing doctor, and I want to continue that. I want to help people and treat them as they should be treated. I want to keep my rural hospital in business. I want my children to look up to me and see what good can be brought into the world from their Catholic faith. They may never get to meet their grandpa, but they will know his legacy through me.

When my dad got sick, it was not my brothers and my sister that came to the hospital to support him. Instead, my mom (who had not lived with my dad for several years) was the one to take me to the hospital two hours away and stay with us over the week of Christmas in 2016. This was the moment that started me on the path to becoming a doctor. Without my mom's support behind me through the last 19 years, I would not have made it this far. My mom has always supported me in everything I do. She has been my greatest advocate as well. There were several occasions in elementary school when teachers would not help me when I raised my hand. They were focused on other children, which had me discouraged in subjects like math and reading. When we worked on homework together, she saw how upset I would get at not understanding it. She would talk to my teachers and explain that I needed some extra help as well. Once I got the help I needed, I was able to understand everything we covered in class. By the end of high school, I finished calculus with a respectable B. After high school, I decided to go to college two hours away from my mom and family. I am her only child, which made it hard for both of us. I moved in early for marching band camp as well. On the first night of camp, being in my quiet room all by myself for the first time, I called her crying. I told her I wanted to come home. She reassured me that I was just homesick and that everything would get better as the week went on, and it did. There were numerous other times when I would call her crying: because I was homesick, because I was physically sick, because I was mentally sick, and because I just wanted to talk to my mom. She was always there to answer my Facetimes and talk to me before bed. She would reassure me that I could get through my hard Spanish class and my extremely tedious independent study lab project. If she was not there every night to tell me that I was still doing a good job, I would have dropped both. Instead, I finished them with A. I suspect most people will say that their mom has supported them educationally, but mine has done so much more. She has helped me grow into a strong and intelligent woman. People say that I am more like my mom than my dad. If that is true, then I will be the strongest and most intelligent woman I know.

One of my favorite movies is the animated version of Mulan. I grew up in Northwestern Pennsylvania and did not have many role models that looked like me. Mulan was the first movie I saw that focused on an Asian woman with intelligence and power. She showed me that I could disprove the limitations people put on me. She used her intelligence when it was needed most to save her country. I hope that one day I can do the same. I hope to be a doctor and save the lives of many patients. I will be my own Mulan by using my intelligence and strengths to take care of the people I care about. The only downside is that I would not have my own Mushu for comic relief.

I believe procrastination is the enemy of my generation. We are surrounded by social media designed to distract and take motivation away from us. One of my biggest study strategies is to go over everything right when I get done with my classes. To minimize the number of distractions, I put my headphones in and listen to music. I also put my phone on the "do not disturb" setting. Both of these things help keep noise and sight distractions down. Those are two of the biggest things that make me procrastinate. For science classes, I find pre-reading and practice help me know the content best. I can repeat questions I miss and retain what I already know. For Spanish, flashcards are very helpful. I make piles of ones I know well and ones I forget. I keep practicing every day. It also helps to spell the words in my head or on paper. This helps me to get the accents on the right letters and the pronunciation correct. Classes that require a lot of reading require comfortable reading positions. I read best when laying upright on a couch or bed. This takes the pressure off my back so I can focus on what the readings say. I will also take notes and write questions as I go.

Some of my favorite hobbies are dancing, crafting, and journaling. These hobbies allow me to express myself and take my mind off stressful situations. I have been dancing for the past nine years. I take classes in jazz, tap, lyrical, ballet, and hip-hop. Dance gives me an outlet to express myself and stay in shape. It also acts as a way of getting out of my comfort zone. I started as a very shy person before dance and now I am a more outgoing person. Jazz and tap are the styles I have been doing the longest. I feel that they allow me to express myself more than ballet and lyrical because they do not have to look pretty or perfect all the time. No one is perfect and these styles reflect that. Crafting is the hobby I have been doing the longest. My mom has been sewing for a long time, which helps me connect with her. She will help me when I get stuck on a project or if I cannot get the stitching right. Over the years, we have accumulated an extreme amount of fabric. I decided that some of them would make great scrunchies when they came back in fashion. Embroidery is tricking, but it is something that gives my hands a task to do and my mind a space to clear. I have been journaling for a little over five years now. I like that it is making art, but it is also helping me stay on schedule and keep track of my busy life. Every year, I do different themes for each month. However, I always do Koi fish for January as it is my birthday month.

I find books with subtle morals to be my favorite, and one series of books that I also find most inspirational is "The Chronicles of Narnia" by C.S. Lewis. I started reading it when the pandemic first hit in March of 2020. I was a big reader before this; because I was stuck in my house for most of the day, I needed to have an escape. There was nothing better than traveling with the Pevensies into a new world that let me escape mine. Narnia may seem like the ideal world to live in, but it also had its problems. Several of the main characters were able to overcome their biggest struggles. Edmund and Eustace as dynamic characters that grew for the better gave me hope that maybe I can grow from staying inside. Lucy acted as the positive force of the four siblings. I started to do little things for my mom and helped to cheer up my friends when possible to be more like these characters. There are also similarities to Christan stories throughout most of the books. As a Catholic, I found this to be inspiring as well. I saw how beautiful Alsan could make life and nature in a time when life was extremely fragile. This lead me to appreciate the little things that I could enjoy from inside and six feet apart. Without these books, I do not think I would have made it out of the first stage of the pandemic.

A legacy is a challenging thing to leave. For example, take Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr. One was killed at a young age but did so much in his short amount of time. These acts helped shape our country. The other one was the one that killed him, and that's what his legacy has amounted to in history books. Hamilton had so much ambition behind him that he was destined to leave an incredible legacy. I am slightly less ambitious, but still want to leave a great legacy. My legacy is not going to the face of the ten-dollar bill (though that would be nice). I would like my legacy to be one filled with kindness and care for others. My goal for becoming a doctor is to help make people better and to give them the treatment they deserve. I have seen many people unfairly treated in the healthcare system. I would like to start small and change it one patient at a time. One by one my patients will get better. My legacy will live on with them and their families when they look back and see healthy parents or grandparents in pictures. I do not want my face plastered all over paper. I do not want to be in musicals. I want people to remember my kindness and care, then spread more kindness and care into the world.

There is a group of simple pleasures I have come to know since starting college. They are called friends. I was not the most outgoing person when I came to campus, but as my first semester went along, I noticed that the people I was around were the peak of positivity. I am not a music major, but I do take the marching band class and symphonic band class. The color guard girls I first met on campus were open and welcoming to everyone they met. They instantly became my family. The symphonic band people equally welcomed me when I started a brand new instrument. Both parties keep encouraging me to become better. I started surrounding myself with these positive people more and more until I was going down to the music lounge to hang out with them every day. I can now say that I appreciate these simple people and the positive impact they have had on me in less than a year. In this last semester of my first year of college, I decided to join the Phi Mu fraternity. These women also exemplify the positivity I want to be around me. They stand for truth, honor, love, and support. Once I am an initiated Phi Mu, I know I will become just as close with my new sisters as I have with my music friends. I will forever be grateful for these people I have met. they are my simple pleasure in life.