After completing my undergraduate studies, I worked in cardiovascular research and set into motion a career in medical research. In three short years of work, I was published four times in well known medical journals. I was soon married and become a mother. Unfortunately, at that time, I became quite ill and was diagnosed with system lupus erythematosus, which causes many medical problems, including severe arthritis, kidney disease, heart problems, chronic infections, blood and bleeding disorders, and more. I took time off work to take care of my young children and my own health and well-being. I truly believe my positive mental attitude was the key to sustaining my health through what was likely my most challenging years. Indeed, over the years, although I have had to navigate through health problems, I have persevered and maintained a strong, healthy body, which has allowed me to continue to be active and to play the sports I love, including beach volleyball, and to pursue my academic and career goals. After becoming a single mother, I engaged in some consulting work, for which I worked long hours for too little compensation. Again, my positive mental attitude and self-confidence served me well, as I decided to take a leap and create my own research consulting firm, Sharpeye Designs Research Consulting. This work-from-home consulting was ideal for me to transition back into the work force with both children to care for and my own health to manage, giving me control over the hours I worked and the profits I made. Over the last 10 years, with my personal commitment to a healthy mind and body, my lupus has remained stable and I have remained very healthy. Through my personal health struggles, I realized the power of positive thinking, both in our physical health and our successes in life. In the last five years, I combined my personal lived-experience with chronic disease and my desire to help people live healthy lives and sought to enter the public health field to advance my research skills and to make a difference in state and national population health outcomes. Using my personal and career research experience, I was able to take advantage of the critical need for public health workers at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and began working as an evaluator/epidemiologist for the Rhode Island Health Department. In this role, I have advanced quickly. I recently developed a new framework for evaluation and assessment of initiatives to advance health equity, for which I won an award at the American Evaluation Association's National Annual Conference this past October, 2023, the George Julness Social Betterment Award. However, I am limited in my work by my lack of advanced degrees. Using my positive attitude once again, I applied and was admitted to Brown University's graduate school. I am currently halfway through completion of a Master of Public Health (MPH) degree with a concentration in epidemiology from Brown University. Following the completion of my MPH, I intend to obtain a PhD in epidemiology. These degrees will help me advance my career, but more importantly, it will bolster my knowledge and credibility on a national level to research and develop new initiatives to support health equity, and public health more generally. The program, however, is expensive, and as a middle aged student with children of my own to support, I cannot afford to take on significant debt. My positive attitude continues to persist, and I believe I can find funding for my coursework and support me in my quest toward researching and creating avenues toward greater health equity in our nation.