I could always see it in her eyes—every time we were at a hospital, my mother seemed incredibly observant of everything happening around her. She was fascinated by the healthcare system and the care that was provided. I recognized that same awe in her because, deep down, I shared her fascination. My name is Isaac Vazquez, and I am applying for this scholarship because I am about to start my nursing program this coming August. Before I delve into the typical reasons for wanting to help people, which most scholarship applications contain, I want to take you back to the beginning—not of my story, but of my mother's. When she was in school in Texas, she was accepted into a program that offered her an early head start on nursing credits and a potential bridge into a nursing career. Unfortunately, she never had the chance to finish. Everyone who completed the program went on to have successful nursing careers, everyone but my mom. She moved to Georgia because her parents found work here, and eventually, she met my father. She became a teen parent with a high-risk pregnancy, which forced her to drop out of school. From then on, she and my father worked tirelessly to provide for my siblings and me. They sacrificed any dreams and aspirations they might have had to ensure their family was well-provided for. That dream might have been out of her reach, but it never truly left her heart. I could always see the passion my mother had for nursing and the medical field as a whole as I grew up. That same passion was passed down to me. My desire to help people, to show compassion, to encourage recovery, and to save lives—all of it was instilled in me by my mother. Fast forward to now: I am about to start nursing school, and it means so much more to me because I am not only doing it for myself and my future career but also to honor the hard work my mother put into getting me to where I am today. I am applying for this scholarship in honor of her. Going onto nursing I look forward to making an impact in my community. I don’t know which specialty of nursing I wanna go into there’s so many I could go on and on. Labor and delivery, intensive care unit, psych, MedSurg, ER, Etc. What I do know is that no matter where I end up I will do my best to provide all of my patients with the upmost care. I will find people who are in the lowest point to feel like they can’t go any lower and help guide them to see the rainbow waiting for them after the storm. I will laugh of my patients, cry with my patients, because after all, the one thing community needs miles an hour time of need your support and unity. Thank you for your consideration.

Being a young Latino man who is gay, I grew up with conflicting feelings about myself. My parents, who are Catholic, wanted me to be brought up in the same religion. I quickly discovered that many followers of this religion do not necessarily agree with people like me. The same place that taught me the importance of love, peace, and sympathy suddenly lost all of those when it came to me simply being true to who my heart loved. The followers who used their own interpretation of scripture to fuel hatred against what is not normal for them pushed me away from the church. People often get frustrated with what they do not understand, and when someone is not like them, ignorance fuels actions that they do not even necessarily see as wrong. I see it every time I am working with my painted nails, and a father looks at them with nothing but disgust on his face. I see it every time a devout Christian leaves a scripture from the Bible telling me to seek repentance and forgiveness from the Lord. Every time I check out a customer at my job as a server, I see that fueled hatred in the eyes of the protesters as I try to enjoy Pride month in Atlanta, the one time a year I can feel fully surrounded by people who understand my experience. Though time has healed some ignorance and educated many, allowing people like me to be more open, we are a long way from fully being accepted and secure in who we are. For as many people who have come to accept us for who we are, there exist double the amount who want nothing to do with us. Despite these challenges, I have found strength in my identity and community. My experiences have driven me to pursue a career in nursing at Georgia Highlands College. I want to use my education to advocate for LGBTQ+ rights and contribute to society at large. As a nurse, I will provide compassionate care to all patients, regardless of their background or identity. I also plan to be an active voice in promoting inclusive healthcare practices and policies that respect and protect LGBTQ+ individuals. Receiving the Rainbow Futures Scholarship would alleviate the financial burdens that currently hinder my educational journey. With a GPA of 2.9, I am committed to improving my academic performance and making the most of my education. This scholarship would allow me to focus more on my studies and less on the financial strain, enabling me to achieve my goal of becoming a nurse and an advocate for LGBTQ+ rights. It would be an honor to receive this scholarship, as it would not only support my education but also empower me to make a difference in the lives of others. Thank you for considering my application.

To me my family is everything and when my family suffers I suffer. My junior year of high school my family experience some thing that we have never even experienced before. My mother had multiple sclerosis and it has been a year since she had been diagnosed in relatively she suffered from no major side To me my family is everything and when my family suffers I suffer. My junior year of high school my family experience some thing that we have never even experienced before. My mother had multiple sclerosis and it has been a year since she had been diagnosed in relatively she suffered from no major effects from it. The summer going on to junior year I remember it like yesterday we had just entered work for she allowed me to go work with her at the warehouse over the summer. The day was coming to an end and suddenly she had a flareup. This was the beginning of the adversity we face. The followingMonths after her flareup was intense. She was hospitalized for a few days and then after she was released she had to go to physical therapy. For me and my siblings it was very difficult for I had watched my mother who is always super hard-working to loosing a good deal of her mobility. I was surprised to see some random spark within me that drove me to help out as much as I could. Whether it was cooking or helping her get whatever she needed was in the house I was there. I was also there to comfort my siblings and provide them with what they needed as well. I went to most of my mom’s physical therapy appointments. I knew it wasn’t going to be an easy time for my family but I wasn’t just going to sit back and not help out I wanted to support my family and my mother. Days after days and weeks after weeks eventually my mom worked hard to regain her mobility. I know her body was never the same she never lost her fighting spirit. She taught me a lot about determination and I learned die no matter how tough it gets I have to be able to support my family and step up. This might of been a time I faced something this hard, but I know that I’ll be ready to step up if it were to happen again.

A parents job is to raise their kids and be an amazing role model. Unfortunately life isn’t as smooth sailing as most would like to be.So what happens when life throws obstacles at you when you have a child to raise. My mother had to figure this out for herself and it’s because of this that she is one of my biggest inspirations in life. To begin my mother wasn’t able to complete high school. An unexpected pregnancy forced her to drop out to properly care for her baby on the way.Living in America without a high school degree is extremely difficult even more when you have a baby to provide for. My mom worked hard doing jobs such as cleaning houses to provide for her family. It is this reason that she advocates so much for the importance of my and my siblings educational career. She always wanted us to graduate high school and to get a degree so we wouldn’t have to work hard like she did. She always inspired me to do my best in school. Soon enough my mom found another job in a warehouse. Though the job was a step up she had to work in conditions that wasn’t easy. I was fortunate enough to go work with her during the summer and I will say that a warehouse gets extremely hot during the summer and extremely cold during the winter. These conditions don’t make work easy but my mom pushed through so she could provide. Unfortunately my mom was diagnosed recently with Multiple Sclerosis. This disease essentially causes your body to attack itself and can be triggered by all sorts of things one of them being intense heat. While working my mom suffered from a flareup causing her to leave work and having to go to the hospital which is where she was first diagnosed. Despite having a disease that made work harder she was determined to push forward and live her life the way she wanted to instead of letting her illness take over her life. My mom worked hard with her disease for the next few months. It was there that she inspired me that no matter what you can work hard and not let small things define your life. Unfortunately a few months after her diagnosis around summer when I was working with her she suffered from another flareup. I didn’t know it was as bad as it would be but this flareup caused her body to suffer in ways I couldn’t have imagined. He spent the following weeks doing physical therapy to regain mobility I had to watch my mom go from using a walker, to a cane, and finally walking. It wasn’t easy but my mom never gave up. I asked her how she managed to keep so much hope and determination and she told me with determination and will nothing is impossible. Despite having many obstacles she’s always inspired me to never give up.