The medical field has always been a huge interest for me. Throughout my childhood, I was intrigued by medical shows and watched everything the nurses and doctors did while at an appointment. My mom would even have to pull me back to give the doctors some space. Now that I am older, I have had the challenge of trying to pick a career. I knew that I wanted to go into the medical field, but I wasn't sure what specific job I wanted to do. After going back and forth between a few options, I have finally settled on a nurse anesthetist. Anesthesiology is something that, after doing some research and asking questions, I have found to be very interesting. Being a nurse anesthetist requires working with numbers and math, problem-solving skills, good communication skills, and the ability to remain calm in stressful situations. I feel that I have these skills and will excel as a nurse anesthetist. This job will require me to not only administer anesthesia, but also to care for and monitor patients before and after surgery. It will provide the opportunity to help and care for people, which is something that I am very passionate about. I will be able to comfort and be with people when they might be entering a surgery that they have been waiting for and finally get to have, or maybe an unexpected surgery that they were not expecting. No matter the circumstances, I will be able to be with them and help them through it both emotionally and medically with anesthesia and other forms of medicine. My mom is the biggest inspiration in my life. She has worked her way up the chain of command in her career as a nurse educator. I have watched as she has faced challenge after challenge in her life, and she faces it head-on every time. No matter what, she always gets back up and keeps going. Even when I think she has reached her limit, she takes a deep breath and keeps moving forward. I asked her one day how she does it, and she responded with an answer that amazed me. "It does no good to stress, worry, or cry over things in life when you could instead be putting that effort into doing something about it. Why sit there and feel sorry for yourself when you can do something to fix it?" My mom has become my source of inspiration, and I hope I can become a fraction of the woman she is. I hope not only to become a successful nurse like her, but follow her example of being an amazing servant leader and source of hope and inspiration. This scholarship will help me to begin the journey of becoming a successful nurse anesthetist and become a better servant leader. This scholarship would mean so much to me and would help to lighten the financial burden that college often brings. Thank you for your consideration!

I have always enjoyed sports. They are something I enjoy not only watching but also competing in. The first sport that I played was softball. I played softball for 7 years. Playing softball taught me how to work with a team to achieve a goal. I am a very competitive person and softball taught me how to put that competitiveness aside and communicate with my team and work together. Equestrian has also been a huge sport in my life. I have competed with my horses for the last 13 years. Being in a sport with horses can teach you many things. The first thing that I learned was how to be hardworking. Equestrian sports require you to work with an animal that is your partner. You have to learn to communicate and work together, which is not an easy task. It is crucial to be hardworking and persevere, even when it seems hopeless. The second thing that I learned is how to be observant. When working with horses, you have to be able to notice the little things. Is the horse injured? Is all the tack secured correctly? What is happening in my surroundings? What is my horse thinking and what is their next step? Noticing and observing the little things keeps the rider and the horse safe. The third and final thing I learned while competing in Equestrian sports is that I am a caring person who wants to help people. Injuries are bound to happen when working with such large animals. When I saw other athletes, or even their animals, get injured, I immediately wanted to help. Competing in sports has taught me not only lessons that I can use in life but also taught me about myself. I learned what I am good at: teamwork, observation, and helping other people. Reflecting on the things that I learned has helped me decide what career I want to spend my life enjoying. Nursing is a career that requires you to work with a team. My observation skills will also be put to use by observing the patient and what needs to be done to provide the right care. My desire to help people is the thing that secured in my mind that nursing is a career for me. Nurses help people in need when they might not be able to help themselves. While sports have been a major part of my life, they are not the only thing that has helped me shape my future goals. Music, art, and reading are also interests that I enjoy. Music has helped me through hard times in my life while also teaching me how to observe the world through my ears, not just my eyes. Art has been a way for me to communicate what is in my mind when I might not have the words to communicate it with my words. Art is a way for others to understand other people's thoughts. And lastly, reading has taught me how to think with imagination. Life is so much more than what meets the eye, and reading has taught me how to think about things deeply and look beyond the surface. My experiences in sports, music, art, and reading have helped me shape what I want my future to look like and develop the courage to go after it.

I have struggled with depression and anxiety for the last 5 years. I always felt like something must be wrong with me because no one ever seemed to notice me. I felt alone like I was not worth anything. I began to doubt myself and believe the world would be better off without me. I thought that no one would notice if I were gone. I never acted on these thoughts because I was too afraid. Because of this, I also began to develop anxiety. I would get overwhelmed easily. I felt like I had so much pressure and couldn't disappoint those around me. I began to dig myself into such a hole that once I realized how much I was struggling, I didn't reach out for help. It took me a severe panic attack to get help. luckily, my mom was there when it happened and she helped calm me down. After that, my mom began to help me. She encouraged me to open up and talk about what was making me struggle so much. My mom was my safe place. She helped me find the things that kept me going. She was also a huge role model for me. I admired how she handled all of her hardships with grace and seemed like she had it all together. In reality, she didn't and she was struggling too. But the difference was that she got help and found ways to cope with it. My mental health began to improve after receiving the help that I needed. After getting better, I made a goal for myself. I was going to strive to do the very best at everything I did. Everything I did, I would try with all I had, and I have done that. My grades have been nearly perfect, maintaining a 4.0 GPA. I learned that I didn't necessarily have to be perfect, but I should try my best. While I beat my depression, I continue to struggle with my anxiety. I still get overwhelmed when and feel like there is no way to fix it. However, I now reach out when I feel this way. I talk to my mom and friends about what I am struggling with. They help me calm down and give me advice. They help me feel stronger and give me hope. I can't thank them enough for everything they have done to help me with my healing journey. My goal now is to graduate this June having maintained a 4.0 GPA all four years of high school. After I graduate, I plan to attend Lower Columbia College and go through their nursing program to become a trauma nurse. I will complete their bachelor's program and get my BSN. I will then work as a nurse while getting my master's degree at Washington State University in Vancouver, Washington. While I pursue my dreams of nursing, I also plan to continue my journey of healing from my mental health. I have told my friends and family my plans and they have promised to hold me accountable and check in on me. I will reach out when I begin to struggle. I have found my coping mechanisms in my friends and family, as well as in music and my horses. I will continue to heal as I pursue my dreams.

I have struggled with anxiety and depression since my 8th-grade year. For a long time, I let it hold me back from doing the things I love. I lived in fear of the future and was scared for anything to change. At the same time, I was battling thoughts of self-harm and suicide. My cousin recently took his life. Seeing how his passing affected my family, I told myself I would never do that to my family. Since then, I have made a point to wake up every day and think of the positives, think of things that I am grateful for. My depression has become much better, but I still struggle with my anxiety. Mental health has affected my relationships too. Not just romantic relationships, but my relationship with friends and family. For a long time, I shut out the people who cared about me. I had convinced myself that I was alone and no one truly understood me. After the wake up call from my cousins passing, I was able to let my friends and family in and they helped me to understand that there are people who love and care about me. My understanding of the world has been affected by my experience with mental health. I have a hard time seeing the world is a good light. But through the help of my mom and my friends, I am starting to be able to see the light in the world. The world is a hard and cruel place where darkness thrives, but, if you look for it, there is light in the world. Everyone finds this light in their own way. For me, I find it in music and nature. By looking and listening to the beautiful things around me, it gives me a sense of hope that everything will be okay and there is good in the world.

I am 17 years old and I plan to attend Lower Columbia College and graduate their nursing program. My goal is to become a trauma nurse and work to serve those in need. I want to become a trauma nurse because it will allow me to help people and be there for them when they are in the worst of times. I also chose this career because I have good problem solving skill which will suite this career nicely. I have always been interested in the medical field and nursing is a great way to engage in that interest. I am currently a senior in high school and have a 4.0 GPA. My goal is to complete high school maintaining a GPA of 4.0. After I graduate, I plan to become a Certified Nursing Assistant. I will do this through Lower Columbia College. Once I complete that, I will work as a CNA while completing the required classes to enter the nursing program that is offered at Lower Columbia College. Lower Columbia College offers a bachelors degree program. I want to achieve a masters degree. To achieve this goal, I will transfer from Lower Columbia College to Washington State University in Vancouver Washington. Once I have received my master's degree, I will graduate and become a trauma nurse. I specifically chose trauma nursing over other types of nursing because I do well under pressure. There is a lot of pressure in an emergency room when dealing with patients who have received traumatic injuries. I believe I will work well under this pressure and it is a suitable career option for me. I want to work as a trauma nurse for a while, but I have also considered going back to school later and potentially furthering my education to become a nurse practitioner.