My name is Hector Hernandez Garcia. I am a 17-year-old high school senior, and I am proud to say that I am the first generation in my Hispanic family to finish high school and even go to college! I migrated from Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico to Phoenix, Arizona in 2016. I have since become bilingual, dominant in both English and Spanish. When I first arrived in the United States, I was lost. It was a new language and a different culture. I enrolled in 7th grade, not knowing English and not being able to communicate with the people around me. I had schoolwork to complete and was practicing my English with Rosetta Stone, and that is when I realized I had to "turn it up to 11". Most people would think I would not do well in school, but I was determined, and I finished the school year. Then came 8th grade. One year later, I was able to speak English, yet I was still new to the country. I still succeeded and was promoted to 9th grade on the principal’s honor roll. Later then came high school, another challenge I had to overcome. Throughout my high school career, I have taken a variety of CTE courses, such as Film and TV, Digital Photography, Coding, etc. My counselor recognized me as a student that stood out and recommended me for the honors track. I have since taken 6+ Honors/AP classes such as AP Calculus, AP Biology, and AP Spanish and have excelled at them. I was also offered the opportunity to serve as the President of the Film and TV Club, since I also serve as the Chief Editor of the school’s daily video announcements, as well as being a member of Math Club, Key Club, and Gamers Club. I am on track to graduate in May 2022 with an honors diploma, and I feel good about myself. This experience showed me how the old saying "where there is a will, there is a way", meaning that nothing is impossible with the power of determination. My current obstacle is paying for college. The problem is being undocumented. I cannot apply for FAFSA, and some colleges even recognize me as a non-resident of Arizona. Yes, I have lived here since I was 11 years old, and I am still not considered a resident. Crazy, right? I am determined to make my family proud. Most importantly, I want to make myself proud, and I will find ways to achieve this. This scholarship would not only allow me to go to college for four years, but also allow me to overcome myself. Allow me to show my family members that what seemed impossible as an immigrant was accomplished. Not only that, but it would open up so many doors for me because I would not have to worry about putting myself and my parents in debt, which is something we cannot afford right now.

My name is Hector Hernandez Garcia. I am a 17-year-old high school senior, and I am proud to say that I am the first generation in my Hispanic family to finish high school and even go to college! I migrated from Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico to Phoenix, Arizona in 2016. I have since become bilingual, dominant in both English and Spanish. When I first arrived in the United States, I was lost. It was a new language and a different culture. I enrolled in 7th grade, not knowing English and not being able to communicate with the people around me. I had schoolwork to complete and was practicing my English with Rosetta Stone. Most people would think I would not do well in school, but I was determined, and I finished the school year. Then came 8th grade. One year later, I was able to speak English, yet I was still new to the country. I still succeeded and was promoted to 9th grade on the principal’s honor roll. Later then came high school, another challenge I had to overcome. Throughout my high school career, I have taken a variety of CTE courses, such as Film and TV, Digital Photography, Coding, etc. My counselor recognized me as a student that stood out and recommended me for the honors track. I have since taken 6+ Honors/AP classes such as AP Calculus, AP Biology, and AP Spanish and have excelled at them. I was also offered the opportunity to serve as the President of the Film and TV Club, since I also serve as the Chief Editor of the school’s daily video announcements, as well as being a member of Math Club, Key Club, and Gamers Club. I am on track to graduate in May 2022 with an honors diploma, and I feel good about myself. My current obstacle is paying for college. The problem is being undocumented. I cannot apply for FAFSA, and some colleges even recognize me as a non-resident of Arizona. Yes, I have lived here since I was 11 years old, and I am still not considered a resident. Crazy, right? I am determined to make my family proud. Most importantly, I want to make myself proud, and I will find ways to achieve this. This scholarship would not only allow me to go to college for four years, but also allow me to overcome myself. Allow me to show my family members that what seemed impossible as an immigrant was accomplished. Not only that, but it would open up so many doors for me because I would not have to worry about putting myself and my parents in debt, which is something we cannot afford right now. Getting a college education to me would be like making a dream come true. One thing my grandma always told me is that we came here to succeed, and I don’t let any obstacles stop me from achieving this, I keep trying. No matter how many times life hits me, I always get up! I have goals to achieve, and I want to be successful to make this journey worthwhile. I want to be able to make her proud and show her that her sacrifices were not in vain.

My name is Hector Hernandez Garcia. I am a 17-year-old high school senior, and I am proud to say that I am the first generation in my Hispanic family to finish high school and even go to college! I migrated from Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico to Phoenix, Arizona in 2016. I have since become bilingual, dominant in both English and Spanish. When I first arrived in the United States, I was lost. It was a new language and a different culture. I enrolled in 7th grade, not knowing English and not being able to communicate with the people around me. I had schoolwork to complete and was practicing my English with Rosetta Stone. Most people would think I would not do well in school, but I was determined, and I finished the school year. Then came 8th grade. One year later, I was able to speak English, yet I was still new to the country. I still succeeded and was promoted to 9th grade on the principal’s honor roll. Later then came high school, another challenge I had to overcome. Throughout my high school career, I have taken a variety of CTE courses, such as Film and TV, Digital Photography, Coding, etc. My counselor recognized me as a student that stood out and recommended me for the honors track. I have since taken 6+ Honors/AP classes such as AP Calculus, AP Biology, and AP Spanish and have excelled at them. I was also offered the opportunity to serve as the President of the Film and TV Club, since I also serve as the Chief Editor of the school’s daily video announcements, as well as being a member of Math Club, Key Club, and Gamers Club. I am on track to graduate in May 2022 with an honors diploma, and I feel good about myself. My current obstacle is paying for college. The problem is being undocumented. I cannot apply for FAFSA, and some colleges even recognize me as a non-resident of Arizona. Yes, I have lived here since I was 11 years old, and I am still not considered a resident. Crazy, right? I am determined to make my family proud. Most importantly, I want to make myself proud, and I will find ways to achieve this. This scholarship would not only allow me to go to college for four years, but also allow me to overcome myself. Allow me to show my family members that what seemed impossible as an immigrant was accomplished. Not only that, but it would open up so many doors for me because I would not have to worry about putting myself and my parents in debt, which is something we cannot afford right now. Getting a college education to me would be like making a dream come true. One thing my grandma always told me is that we came here to succeed, and I don’t let any obstacles stop me from achieving this, I keep trying. No matter how many times life hits me, I always get up! I have goals to achieve, and I want to be successful to make this journey worthwhile. I want to be able to make her proud and show her that her sacrifices were not in vain. My typical week outside of school is pretty much like a routine. I wake up around 6 in the morning and shower every single day as well brushing my teeth, after school, I tend to hang out with my friends for a while and I go to every school event whether it is sports or any fun activity. Then I take my friends to dinner and then go home to do my homework, and if it is a reasonable time, I tend to play online with my friends as well. During the weekend I tend to volunteer at St. Mary's Food Bank Alliance, I volunteer for 6 hours every single Saturday including my birthday. I feed my curiosity inside school mainly by going above and beyond, I take honors and AP classes to get the most out of high school, and outside of school, I like to watch documentaries or educational videos about things that seem interesting to me on YouTube.