I want to see the world, I dream of is backpacking through countries and experiencing the culture and everything offered.

Community isn't just about where we live theres so much more to it than that. It’s the people we see everyday, form connections with, and moments we share. One of the most powerful experiences that has shaped my sense of community and hope for the future came from one of my weeks as camp counselor at Camp Weloki, when I was working specifically with middle schoolers that week. I get the opportunity to mentor younger girls during some of the most formative moments of their lives and be someone they look up to without even realizing it. One summer at camp, I was more than just a counselor to this one girl. She had no siblings so I was like a big sister for her. We connected instantly, I was also a listener, and a source of encouragement for her. One moment that stands out was sitting on the edge of the pond with her. She was confiding in me about her anxieties and troubles. One of them being how she doesn't feel "good enough”—in all aspects of life. We talked up until the dinner bell rang and I reminded her that worries and anxieties are normal in life. I gave her examples of my life how if we always compare ourselves which is easier said than done we will never fully feel good enough. leadership and confidence comes in many forms and takes time to develop, it also looks different in every single person. The next day, I watched her take a big step and gather some of the younger girls from elementary and help them out. I could see her anxiety while doing it but saw all of those little faces looking up to her and they didn't notice it. It usually is only noticeable to ourselves. Her smile was worth the long talk. Experiences like that fill me with hope all the time. These girls are filled with curiosity, empathy, and want to make a difference—they just need someone to believe in them sometimes and give that little push. I saw so much potential in her that she couldn't see. I know she's going to be a counselor one day and we will get to work together. In all of the girls I see leaders of tomorrow, and it reminds me that change often begins with simple moments. Being part of a community like Camp Weloki I am beyond blessed because I know it is rare but without it growing up I wouldn't be who I am now. That community gave me pushes when I needed them but also love. Now I get to do that with girls. It helps me see how every small word of encouragement can make a difference.

Taylors music during the Eras tour has helped me realize just how much I've been through truly but also how strong I am. Getting the chance to listen to so many songs not heard in concert before really made it all come back up. I didn't realize how many things affected me but also others. Getting to see me connect with other fans on such a deep level with music has been amazing. The newest album TTPD has done more for me than I thought it would. To begin with it came out on the anniversary of my best friends death, but also my boyfriend who was about to propose had broken up with me just a few weeks prior. I was probably in one of the lowest places I had ever been. It took me weeks to listen to the album because every time I turned it on I just cried non-stop. Then one day I forced myself to push through it all the way. This album has helped me connect with Taylor so much. It also showed me it's ok to feel what I felt about the breakup and for it to take time. I had never gone through anything before so I didn't know what to do. But I was connecting with her lyrics on such a deep level it hurt to know my favorite person and the one who I look up to for so much has gone through the same pain I have before. I started telling myself if Taylor can push through a breakup like that then I can finish school and not drop out. That is what allowed me to finish the semester. I just kept thinking I wanted to make her proud and if she could do it then I can to. The songs loml and I can do it with a broken heart really got me the most. I took a lot of those lyrics to heart to get me through the semester and to come back to school even. I took Taylors advice and faked it till I made it. I ended up finishing school even though I missed almost a month because of everything and my mental health. I was finally starting to get better months later when I didn't see the end in sight and seeing how happy she is with Travis when she thought she knew who she would marry gave me hope that I can find someone else also. I would go on roughly 2-3 hour runs almost everyday that was the only way to escape and I just blasted Taylor the whole time. This was the only outlet for me to not think about what was going on in my life. I watched the lives streams and everything to help me get back up on my feet and enjoy life again. Never did I think the eras tour would help me get back to a happy life and realize it will be ok, but Taylor just has a power that I don't know how to describe. Seeing her preform through all of it and no one know just shows that anyone can truly do anything if they fake it for long enough until you trick your brain which is exactly what she did and I am thankful because it gave me the strength to do the same.

I have volunteered most of my life starting in 1st grade because I was a girl scout. So from the beginning, I have done it. I think recently or as I got older and earned money to get stuff I wanted I started to see the bigger impact of volunteering. The smallest things you do make a big difference in people's life. Even things you would be like well everyone has this or that; in reality everyone doesn't have that or can't take that for granted. The happiness that these small things make to people is worth everything. I love seeing the smile I can make especially on kids. They have the biggest heart and you don't have to do much to help the kids in need. to make them happy. I need this scholarship for a few reasons honestly. The first one being my school tuition has gone up again this year and last year I had to apply for an emergency fund for my school because I wasn't able to pay the whole thing and you only get that once so I'm worried for this year. Also, my parents cut me off because I chose a school they didn't like so it is hard to get approved for student loans on my own. I tried multiple last year and didn't get approved. I had to basically beg my parents to do it and they won't do it again. I try to work during the school year but it is hard. I am pre-med with a neuroscience degree doing almost 18 credit hours, running a service event and trying to save time for my social life so I don't burn myself out. I hate not having enough and seeing all my friends parents just paying out of pocket because they can afford makes me sometimes feel different. In addition, I also got a $7,000 and $1,000 scholarship last year but because of budget cuts, I only got $5,000 from the first and didn't even get the other one. So in my head, I'm just calculating all the extras I had last year when I couldn't even make it work so what am I supposed to do this year then? I've thought of dropping out of school for a semester but I don't want to miss out on school with my friends its already my junior year and I didn't come here until sophomore year life is short enough. I just feel like there is no right way to go about this and all my school can say to me is we have no more money to give you. I don't want to give up after I fought hard to get to this school of my dreams which really is a dream. This would honestly be the best news ever and make my day.

I think one of my greatest achievements to date is switching schools and moving across the country knowing no one. It was a really tough decision but I knew my first college wasn't for me so I decided to switch my sophomore year somewhere 14 hours away almost. I knew no one and hadn't even stepped foot on the campus. I am super proud of myself for sticking with it and proving myself to do better academically at my new school than my old one. This experience taught me so much about myself and how strong of a person I am. I thought I would get scared leading up to the move but I actually wasn't somewhere deep down in me was calm so I just kept my eyes ahead and tried not to think too much of it. I had to push myself at times when I was scared to walk up to new people even being in college, going to events when I knew no one because I didn't want to look left out, or asking for help when I needed it. I don't think I would have done any of that if it wasn't for the school I was at. This school creates the most welcoming environment I have ever had in my life and I am so grateful for it and would convince anyone to come here! The teachers also pushed me when I wasn't confident in myself and seeing others pushing me and seeing potential in my grades was really nice for me because that wasn't something I was used to at all. It taught me more than just how strong I am but also the perseverance I have, and most importantly I can actually push myself into situations I am not comfortable in but also be confident in my schooling and what I love and not be judged for it. I think part of the reason this achievement worked so well wasn't just all on my part I had friends routing for me back home but also right away had people on the first day reach out to me which helped more than those people know and I am actually still friends with all of them now. My greatest achievement might not look like most other people's but I had never been away from home my whole life my old school was 20 minutes from home so this was a big jump for me but to me, this is a big thing in my life that I am beyond proud of and love to tell people.

One of my favorite Taylor Swift songs in the 1989 album is You Are in Love or Clean. I just love you are in love so much. It to me is so special and light. I think of myself as a hopeless kinda romantic so listening to this kinda lets my inner child out when thinking about love in a way. And now that I have found my true love I feel even more connected to this song. We were both hoping to hear this as a surprise song because we want it at our wedding it means so much to us both. After everything we have been through we have found love. The music itself is so beautiful if you just listen to the lyrics and acoustics not singing along with it, because sometimes with doing that you miss the meaning. It gives me my older princess moment but with Taylor Swift which to me is beyond special and I couldn't ask for more. Listening to a love song about my love life now as I have grown up with her since I was like 4 years old is just not even able to be put into words. It's a special moment with her that is emotional but also with my boyfriend as I get to share the same love with him. I love the honesty that this song has and how it is so pure. I think it would be a perfect Disney x Taylor mix over in a princess movie. This song was able to give me more than I could've imagined when I first heard it and how her music can get me through everything I hope this song doesn't become a sad thought to me or a memory. Taylor Swift is a foundational part of me so that makes her music a part of that. She in a sense gave me ideas of what love was before I had it and I think that shaped me for what I wanted to look for. If this is what she said it was then that is what I wanted then. She wrote it from an outside perspective of what she thought love was and I think it captured it better than she could've because not only did it capture what her friends were going through, and future swifties would go through but also what she wanted out of love. Those same things she wanted many swifties to want also including me. But thank you, Taylor Swift, for my love for you and for giving me this connection and memories to last.

I am currently a sophomore on the pre-med track with a major in neuroscience. I had a feeling since I was little wanting to be a doctor. I think it stems from going to a camp that helps little kids with mental health issues and seeing now as an adult and as I grew up with the camp how much change 1 person can do. I want to help kids just as they helped me but in a slightly different way; by being a pediatric surgeon. A hospital is a scary place for kids and I want to make it less scary for them and try to bring some light to their day. I want to dress up as their favorite character to see them smile and let them know it is going to be ok. I was in and out of hospitals when I was younger and there was one doctor that really went out of their way for me and I still remember them to this day for doing that. That's what I want to be. I want to draw pictures on their scars for them to see when they wake up. The thing that has made school very difficult is money. Currently, I don't know if I honestly will be finishing this semester. I didn't get approved for a student loan and the school year has already started. So am I panicking a little, yes I am. I'm trying to hope something will happen but honestly really worried at this point.

I hope in like 10 years from now to be a pediatric surgeon. My goal is that I can make the kids smile even though they are in the hospital I want to make it seem like they aren't. I feel bad that they have to be in there but why not try to brighten up their day. I want to dress up in capes, and costumes to not seem like a scary doctor who is always coming in to take vitals or go to surgery. Why not be the reason they like a hospital a little bit more. They can look up to me and I'll be a face they remember for the rest of their lives.

Starting in 8th grade I started saving up money to buy my own car because I knew I wouldn't be able to get one if I didn't help out. Every paycheck I received until I turned 17 was put into a savings account. Finally, when the time came to buy a car I was able to get what I wanted and pay for it in full with my own money. I didn't realize how proud this would make me feel. But knowing I own my car and I did that is motivating me for the future. I am doing the same thing again now but instead of a car, I'm trying to save money to be able to complete my bachelor's in Neuroscience. I have been working part-time while being a full-time student. This summer I am hoping to use all my time to work and save money so I can continue school in the fall.

I think society needs to except that we are equal to men. We shouldn’t get congratulations when we get the best in the class because usually it’s the guy. Women need to step up and encourage each other to pursue careers that are more male-dominated so it’s not oh well another female made it through. It should be the men worrying about us over powering their field. The only way for us to achieve this it may seem stereotypical but we need to support each other. Women are generally more emotional than men and what is said to us we take to heart. That being said we need to bring each other up not push them down. Encourage them to do what they want matter how hard it may be or how unreasonable. The world is ever-changing and we can be the cause of that change. The more science and math fields are more male-dominated. We need to teach the younger generations that it’s more than what they are taught in school to those fields. There are fields that are science and math related but are still fun and not all hard-working. They need to be more all girls size programs just like there are algae science programs and schools. Girls should be invited to join robotics teams and all those activities that most guys get invited to. We need to start this from a young age because that is when they start figuring out what they want to go into. by getting it into our kids brains at a younger age allows them to think upon it more and be more interested in going into the career.

It has made it tough for me. It all started when I lost my best friend to suicide at a young age then lost another one year later. I began to isolate away from people thinking it was my fault and believed that for years. But soon I realized I had no friends I had created a new problem but I tried to make friends and everyone ignored me or didn’t want to. I feel like there is something wrong with me sometimes. I go through mental break downs weekly due to over stress weather that be school or friends or my ADHD realizing I’m not like others and can’t focus the same way they do. It frustrates me sometimes because I have to put in more work and people don’t realize that it’s not my fault. It makes it harder in my every day life because I feel people judge me because of it. I was first diagnosed with depression and anxiety and seventh grade after the loss of my best friend the first time. And it was a struggle it was the biggest thing that help me I was in disbelief for months after. I had seen him just the night before and I thought it was my fault. He lived up in my neighborhood so I heard the sirens that night but didn’t know it was for him. I sometimes get nightmares because of it still remembering I’m going up but not knowing why. But now it’s my senior year and I am graduating without my best friend beside me. It’s definitely hard for me to realize that and that it’s already been that long. I have visited him multiple times this year with it being such a hard year for me on top of Covid. Everyone always says senior year is the best well not for me. I have almost no friends at my school making it very hard for me to want to even do anything because I feel like it’s my fault. Or whenever people ask me I am too tired or don’t feel like it because of my depression. People then get frustrated with me and that makes me more mad because they don’t realize how hard it is for me to sometimes get out of bed every day. Right now I’m probably at one of my lowest. To get out of bed is exhausting to me. I am in a boot so I can’t do the one thing that makes me happy because I injured myself while doing the sport. I just didn’t get the senior I wanted and I’m ready to get out of it. I want to move on with life and know what it’s like to actually laugh. Not have to fake it for people or fake a smile or wear masks all the time so they don’t actually see what I’m feeling. The issue what society is there gonna judge you if you’re not gonna wanna talk to you because of that so if you don’t put on a mask people will. That makes it difficult to trust people because I never know if they’re putting on a mask with me because they know my past and don’t want to make it worse for me. I don’t need pity I would just like to have a real friend again I know what it’s like to be happy and excited.