When I was a kid, I watched my mother suffer from addiction. She went from job to job, and struggled to pay bills. My father had the same problem, and both sides of the family too. I started working right away at 15 and continued to do so, and I moved out at 17. After a big layoff last year, I decided to go back to school and finally get my Computer Science degree. I'm really glad I did, because I have already been a self-taught QA Engineer, with a GED, and I knew this was the perfect chance to upgrade my life. Both of my parents were likely inherently smart, but they just couldn't keep bills paid, and didn't get the care they needed as teenagers and adults, so despite my own hardships from them, I want to forge a new path for my family, and stop the cycle of trauma here and now. I myself am 4 years sober, and despite getting very far in life on my own, I still had to work very very hard to get here. I also had leukemia for 2 years as a kid, which was difficult on the family. The debt from before and after this just kept going on and on. I take very good care of myself, and go into a Cancer Survivorship Program here in Portland at OHSU a couple of years ago. In order to prepare for college as a first-gen college student, I made sure to reach out to other people in my community who went back to school as adults. I just turned 35, and am proud to be at Portland Community College. I am working on my Computer Science degree and finishing it up at Portland State University next year. I have wanted to become a software developer, and preferably in the healthcare world. I want to be able to make a difference with my technical skills since that is my talent. I have prepared myself by getting financial counseling from my bank, getting a part-time job at PCC in the Student Union buildling, getting to know my peers coworkers and students, and I utilize all of the tutoring options I can get my hands on. In the end, its all about asking for help, and accepting help from resources/community. I was grateful enough to have time for 2 terms to volunteer in the school's food pantry in order to "give back." In the future, I look forward to making a difference in healthcare tech after I get my degree. Thanks for reading my essay!

Growing up in the early 90s, my fascination with computers was evident early on, as I taught myself to code as a teenager and continually found ways to nurture my knack for technology, even while working in restaurants on their POS systems. My path to college was delayed by several challenges, including survival. My family background includes a long line of alcoholics, addicts, and mental health issues. Despite many being estranged or having passed away, my maternal grandmother, Nanna, remained my guiding light. She has always encouraged me to strive for my best, and I'm grateful she can see me attend college at 34. Before college, I spent 6.5 years in tech, but pursuing higher education was always a dream of mine. The experience so far has been incredible. As the first generation in my family to attend college, I aim to break cycles of trauma and advance my career as an engineer. Additionally, I survived AML Leukemia as a child, spending two years in hospitals in Atlanta under the age of five. That survival felt like a miracle, and it has influenced me to live each day to its fullest. In college, I'm committed to engaging fully with my classes. I enjoy absorbing information and understanding its real-world applications. My ultimate academic goal is to graduate with a major in Computer Science from Portland State University. I'm also keen to continue volunteering at the school’s food pantry and explore other advocacy opportunities. Grades are important to me, so completing my projects with true sense of wonder and curiosity have been assisting me in making straight As so far. I want to continue that path moving forward. It is really important to me to understand all the work I am doing, and not just to turn something in quickly. Long-term, my goals are to maintain my health and align my work with my purpose of helping others. Despite being too squeamish for a medical career, my strong math and problem-solving skills are well-suited for software development, particularly in healthcare or climate tech. Unfortunately, a series of layoffs impacted my job as a QA Engineer, which pushed me to seize the opportunity to pursue my Computer Science degree. Therefore, being a female software engineer (front-end) would be such a dream. I love working on technical problems with others that include app or backend architecture. If you consider me, I will not let you all or my grandmother down. Life is too short!

Talking to someone else in recovery is incredibly impactful. I've learned crucial life lessons from other alcoholics and addicts who are also rebuilding their lives. For 16 years, I used alcohol and drugs to fit in, especially as a traumatized and introverted child with alcoholic parents. But blaming others for my upbringing by drinking was never a reliable solution. I wanted to show my love to my friends and family truly but couldn't. I've been sober for over three years now. My turning point came after waking from a 12-hour blackout on New Year's Eve, a scenario that wasn't new to me. At that time, my depression was deep, my actions misaligned with my values, and my health was failing. After starting therapy in 2018, I began treating my alcoholism and complex PTSD as medical conditions. Now, I completely avoid alcohol and drugs, viewing myself as severely allergic. I'm also over two years free from cigarettes and vaping. Recovery has reshaped my life and must remain my priority. It has granted me a second chance. Being part of a recovery community, especially through programs like AA, Alanon, and ACA, has been vital. These groups taught me the importance of healing together. Following the 12 steps and sharing my journey anonymously in meetings have emphasized a powerful truth: to keep my sobriety, I must help others achieve theirs. This cycle of support not only sustains my recovery but strengthens our entire community, illustrating that recovery and community go hand in hand.

Absolutely, I'll keep the style closer to your original tone while making it smoother and more coherent: When I was a kid, my dad used to take apart VCRs and other electronics to figure out how they worked and fix them. He never had formal training but loved inventing little gadgets. Growing up as a teenager in the early 2000s, I fell in love with the early internet. It was a blast coding on websites like LiveJournal and Myspace. It was a really fun time to be online! I got pretty good with HTML and always had a knack for figuring out tech stuff. Fast forward to 2016, after working in restaurants for 12 years, I knew I was ready for more. My parents both struggled with addiction, which delayed my career start until I was 27. That year, I landed a job at Mercari by acing their Customer Support tests. It was incredible because I had always wanted a normal day job. A few months in, I got promoted twice, ending the year as a Team Lead. I really enjoyed troubleshooting complex issues for customers and helping out my managers. I even got to create much of the knowledge base for Mercari as they were new to the U.S. market. By summer 2019, I was part of Mercari's first QA team, and another team member and I set up the company's initial automation framework using Appium and Ruby. I stayed at Mercari for almost 6.5 years until major layoffs affected me about a year ago. Despite many interviews, I couldn't land another QA Engineer role. After much thought, I decided to pursue my Computer Science degree since I only had my GED. Being a first-generation college student, it's important to me to break the cycle of trauma and poverty in my family. My dream job is to be a full-stack developer in software, particularly in climate tech or the healthcare industry. Having survived childhood leukemia, I feel a strong pull towards healthcare or contributing positively to the world in some way, though I'm too squeamish to be a doctor! But seriously, I love solving problems, whether in a team or on my own, and building software with code. I've really enjoyed learning C++ in my programming classes. I believe I'm the best candidate for this scholarship because I'm determined to make a difference in the world. It's in my heart to do so. I know my strengths and I'm leaning into them to become a strong female software engineer. Plus, I'm getting more and more excited as I progress in my classes and gain new knowledge. Please consider me for this opportunity, and thank you for your consideration.