My father has been one of the most influential people in my life and the foundation of the journey I am on today. Before he became ill, our family was close, stable, and full of love. When he was diagnosed with ALS, everything changed. Watching my father slowly lose his strength, independence, and ability to communicate was heartbreaking. I was young and becoming a parent myself, and I was forced to grow up quickly while navigating grief, responsibility, and fear. His illness reshaped my understanding of life and gave me a deeper sense of compassion and purpose. During my father’s illness, I became one of his caregivers. Being present for him during his most vulnerable moments introduced me to healthcare in a deeply personal way. I learned how meaningful it is to provide comfort, dignity, and emotional support when someone feels powerless. That experience inspired my decision to work as a home health aide and later become a certified nursing assistant. Even after his passing, my father continues to guide my actions and values. I carry his memory with me in how I care for others and in my commitment to serving people with empathy and respect. My children have had an equally profound impact on my journey. Becoming a mother changed the way I view responsibility, strength, and perseverance. After losing my father, I became the head of my household and began raising my children largely on my own. There were moments when the weight of everything felt overwhelming, but my children gave me purpose when I felt exhausted and uncertain. They are the reason I keep going even when the path feels difficult. My children motivate me to pursue education and personal growth, not only for myself but for the future I want them to have. I want them to see that challenges do not define limitations and that persistence can create opportunity. My academic journey represents breaking cycles of hardship and building a foundation of stability, growth, and hope. Every class I complete is a step toward providing my children with a life rooted in security and possibility. My father taught me compassion through loss, and my children teach me resilience through love. Together, they have shaped my values, my goals, and my determination to succeed. Their influence drives me to continue my education, serve my community, and build a life centered on purpose, strength, and care. This journey is not just about my success, it is about honoring where I come from and creating a better future for those who depend on me.

I anticipate using my college education to give back to my community through compassionate healthcare, advocacy, and service. As a nursing student and certified nursing assistant, I work closely with individuals who are often at their most vulnerable. I see how quality care, clear communication, and genuine empathy can make a lasting difference not only for patients but also for their families. My education is preparing me to serve my community at a higher level by equipping me with the clinical knowledge, critical thinking skills, and ethical foundation needed to provide patient centered care. My desire to help my community is shaped by lived experience. I grew up low income and became the head of my household at a young age after losing my father and navigating significant family instability. I am now a single mother of three, balancing school, work, and parenting while working toward a better future. These experiences have given me a deep understanding of the challenges many families face, including limited access to healthcare, financial stress, and lack of support. Through nursing, I plan to serve individuals who feel overlooked or overwhelmed by the healthcare system, offering not only medical care but also understanding, patience, and advocacy. Even now, while completing my education, I look for ways to support my community beyond my assigned responsibilities. I escort residents to medical appointments on my days off, volunteer when possible, and prioritize treating every patient with dignity and respect. With a college degree, I will be able to expand this impact by taking on greater responsibility, educating patients and families, and contributing to improved health outcomes across my community. My educational journey is also deeply connected to my personal goals. One of my greatest motivations is to create stability and opportunity for my children. Completing my degree represents breaking cycles of financial hardship and showing my children that perseverance and education can lead to meaningful change. I want them to see that even when life presents obstacles, commitment and hard work can open doors. College has helped me move beyond survival and into purpose. Through my coursework and clinical experiences, I am learning how to pair compassion with professionalism and how to remain calm and intentional in high pressure situations. These lessons are shaping me into a nurse who will not only provide care but also contribute positively to healthcare teams and the broader community. I hope to continue my education and eventually take on mentorship or leadership roles, supporting future nurses and advocating for patient focused care. Ultimately, my college education allows me to transform adversity into service. It gives me the tools to help others while achieving personal growth and stability for my family. By investing in my education, I am investing in my community, my children, and a future rooted in compassion, service, and meaningful impact.

ALS changed my life in ways I could never have imagined. Before my father was diagnosed, we were a close and happy family. Once ALS entered our lives, everything slowly began to unravel. My father declined rapidly and passed away within three years of his diagnosis. I was still a teenager and pregnant at the time, forced to grow up while grieving the loss of the person who held our family together. Watching ALS take away his independence, mobility, and voice reshaped my understanding of strength, love, and responsibility. During my father’s illness, I became one of his caregivers and began working as a home health aide while continuing my education. Caring for him taught me how demanding and emotionally heavy ALS care is, not only for patients but for families. Those experiences inspired my decision to pursue healthcare. After my father passed, my mother disappeared, leaving me to navigate adulthood, grief, and motherhood on my own. I later found myself in a domestic violence relationship, which further disrupted my educational path. Despite these challenges, I refused to give up. Education became my way to create stability, purpose, and a better future for my children. ALS has given my education meaning. I am not pursuing nursing by chance. Every course I take is personal. I know what it feels like to sit beside a hospital bed, to depend on nurses for comfort and guidance, and to feel powerless while a loved one suffers. These experiences drive my commitment to nursing and motivate me to show up fully in my studies and clinical work. This scholarship would provide vital support as I continue my education as a nursing student and single mother living on a low income. Balancing tuition, books, transportation, childcare, and daily expenses is a constant challenge. Financial support from the Sandra West ALS Foundation would allow me to focus more fully on my education and clinical training rather than the stress of financial survival. It would help ease the emotional and financial weight of carrying this journey alone and remind me that my story and purpose matter. I remain connected to the ALS community through participation in the Walk to Defeat ALS, honoring my father and raising awareness for a disease that forever changed my life. I also carry ALS advocacy into my work as a certified nursing assistant by providing patient centered care rooted in empathy, patience, and dignity, especially for individuals facing progressive or terminal illnesses. I understand the fear and grief families experience, and I use that understanding to guide how I care for others. ALS took my father and changed the course of my life, but it also gave me direction. It taught me resilience, compassion, and the importance of being present during life’s most difficult moments. Through nursing, I honor my father’s memory and serve others affected by ALS with intention, empathy, and hope. This scholarship would help me continue transforming loss into purpose and lasting impact.

I was inspired to become a nurse through personal loss, caregiving, and a deep connection to my community. At eighteen years old, I lost my father to ALS. Before his passing, I helped care for him as a home health aide beginning in 2014. Witnessing his physical decline and the emotional toll it took on our family showed me how powerful compassionate nursing care can be. The nurses who cared for my father did more than manage symptoms, they brought comfort, dignity, and humanity into moments that were deeply painful. That experience planted the foundation for my calling to nursing. After my father passed, I became the head of my household at a young age. My mother was no longer present, and later I became a single mother of three. Despite living on a low income and facing significant personal hardship, I remained committed to changing my circumstances through education. I have worked as a certified nursing assistant since 2019, caring for residents throughout Chicagoland. Even on my days off, I volunteer to escort residents to medical appointments because helping others is not something I turn off when my shift ends. Nursing is not simply what I do, it is who I am. Through my nursing career, I hope to provide intentional, patient centered care that reflects empathy, professionalism, and respect. I want to be the nurse who listens closely, notices what others may overlook, and treats every patient as an individual with a story. I plan to continue my education, earn my RN, and serve diverse populations across hospital, community, and home health settings. My goal is to advocate for vulnerable patients and provide care that supports not only physical health but emotional well being. Cindy J. Visser’s life and career deeply resonate with me. Her dedication to serving her community through medical surgical nursing, urgent care, hospice, and home health reflects the versatility and heart that I admire in nursing. Like Cindy, I believe nursing is a lifelong commitment to people, not a single role or setting. Her ability to blend clinical excellence with empathy is the standard I strive to uphold in my own practice. Cindy’s experience with terminal illness and receiving care at home holds special meaning for me. I understand what it is like to sit beside a loved one in uncertainty, to rely on nurses for guidance, and to find comfort in those who show up with intention and compassion. Carrying on Cindy’s legacy means honoring patients as whole people, remaining present in difficult moments, and serving with humility and care. I will carry Cindy’s values forward by leading with empathy, serving my Chicagoland community with integrity, and approaching every patient interaction with compassion and professionalism. Nursing has allowed me to transform adversity into purpose, and through this career, I will continue to honor lives like Cindy’s by caring for others with heart, respect, and unwavering dedication.