I’ve always known that I am good with my hands. From a very young age I liked to see how things work. I could take things apart and put them back together, and assemble toys without any help or a manual. I enjoyed making things out of nothing. It was fun for me but I realized it was actually a blessing when I was diagnosed in third grade with dyslexia and dysgraphia, which make reading and writing extremely difficult. Because of these challenges, schoolwork was very hard for me. I think I would have felt very badly about myself if I didn’t learn that I had other talents. My mother always told me that I would be successful despite my challenges if I just worked hard so I have really pushed myself to do that. When I reached high school my mom encouraged me to take my first metalworking class and I was hooked. I took all the classes my school offered so then my teacher recommended I move on to the vocational high school to take their welding program. I have really enjoyed my two years there. The best thing about it has been learning that I could be really good at something. I have won a performance award in each semester I have been there, which is something I never could have imagined. Me, winning a school award! I am so grateful to my metal shop teacher and my mom for inspiring me to pursue a career in welding. I have given a lot of thought to my future and what my five-year plan might look like. I know that the first year will be spent at Hobart Institute of Welding Technology in Troy, Ohio. It's far away from my home in New Jersey but I will learn so much there. Once I receive my education I know I will enter the workforce but I’m not exactly sure just yet which exact path I’ll choose. I know I could join a union like the pipefitters and work my way up from apprentice to journeyman. But I think the best way I could give back would be to become a welding instructor and inspire another kid to follow this path, just like my teachers have done for me. Or maybe eventually a welding inspector, helping to keep the community safe. The one thing I know for sure is that if I work really hard I will be prepared for whatever welding career I end up choosing. Aside from my career, my goals in life are to be happy and successful and I believe my welding career will help me start to achieve those goals. I think all the time about how my father also had trouble learning in school when he was young. He was also good with his hands and he became a tradesman after high school, a carpenter, and he was successful. So I see a lot of him in myself. He passed away when I was 6 years old but I know that he would be very proud that I’m going to become a welder.