7/10/2014, was the day I was diagnosed with type 1 Diabetes. I was only seven. And, although I have been seizure-free for many years, as a young child I was hospitalized twice while doctors examined and searched for the cause of my grand mal seizures. Unable to truly pinpoint what caused my epilepsy, my doctors were able to find a combination of drugs to reduce and eventually eliminate my seizures. My toddler body endured thirty seizures a day sometimes. The side effects of frequent seizures and treatment with powerful anticonvulsant medicines resulted in fine motor skill delays. Some examples of fine motor skills are buttoning shirts, holding pencils and writing. Struggling with some basic skills makes me appreciate what others go through, because I have seen it firsthand. However, this medical past doesn’t define me. God made me whole and for a distinct purpose. I believe it is to show his love as an elementary teacher. My passion for education fuels my pursuit of a reading endorsement and minor in Instructional Strategist I or II training. I want a career working with special needs students. An award like the John Young ‘Pursue Your Passion’ Scholarship will make that possible. So why is it my dream to educate kids? It comes down to love and service. God has given me gifts of patience and endurance. Not so much now, but I used to be so soft spoken, that I rarely spoke to others unless they spoke to me first. I’m still shy, but I enjoy volunteering for good causes and service projects. The more chances I can serve others, the more I learn, connect and grow. I volunteer with the Brighton, Iowa, Lions Club and I am part of a Church youth group that went to Kentucky last year to work on repairing homes in an area that was severally impacted by flooding. Other service roles I enjoy include donating blood, working with the Parent/Teachers Association and I was elected twice to serve as our Church Assistant Financial Secretary. I am a member of the Waco High School (Wayland, IA) National Honor Society. I take dual credit classes so that I am earning college credits now while still in high school and my GPA 3.92. I run Cross Country and Track & Field. I’ve earned my varsity letter in both sports. Music is also important to me and I play the clarinet in band, the violin in orchestra and sing soprano in our school choir. I am often singled out for my nearly always present smile and my quiet determination. I’m going to make lifelong friendships at college and work with closely with professors to become an out-of-this-world teacher. I’ve worked at a daycare while in high school and I can see there will be challenging days, but loving on kids is so rewarding. It is worth the hard work to be a champion and role model for tomorrow’s leaders.

For myself, civic-mindedness started early, runs deep, and helps me to aim higher. One thing that I have found through giving back and serving others is that it affects me as much as it affects them. Your community spans farther than where you live. For some people it is their country or the whole world. While I have many experiences serving people close to my home in Iowa, my most valuable serving experience occurred in Pike County Kentucky, with my hometown Church Youth Group going there to help. This past July my heart was changed when I saw firsthand that what matters in your life is not what you have physically, it is what you have in your heart. Appalachia Build is a home repair program with a location in West Virginia and Kentucky. Extreme flooding damaged 15,000 homes in Pike County Kentucky alone in 2022. The residents lost almost everything they had besides their faith in God. The unfailing faith and compassion of the community made me realize I sometimes may be looking in the wrong places to find peace and fulfillment. Each year tens of millions of Americans donate resources and time in their communities. I don’t know why all of them do it, but I can tell you a sense of generosity inspires me to be involved. Sometimes “generosity” is thought of in monetary terms, but most dictionaries do not use “money” to define its meaning. Generosity is a quality — like honesty and patience, and Cambridge dictionary says it means, “a willingness to give help or support, especially more than is usual or expected.” Stopping by a Lion’s Club blood drive directs my thoughts from drama in my high school class, to the fact that three people could benefit from a single donation. I’ve found that I’m happier when I help others. My inspiration also comes from empathy. I can identify with needing help. A derecho struck Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on August 10, 2020, and had winds of up to 140 miles per hour for 45 minutes. My great uncle’s home was in its path and my family went to clear debris at his home and even from the road to his house so that insurance adjusters and power line workers could get through. If you see needs up close, you can feel for what others are going through. Seeing his home with a damaged roof, prepared me to work hard a few years later when I could go to Pike County, Kentucky, and see similar homes needing repair. Helping others gives me a sense of fulfillment. I’ve learned all sorts of skills and gained confidence from volunteering. At first you may not know what to do. It’s like being empty, or unskilled. But fixing problems that have hurt and inhibited others moves the scale. You feel it going from “less” and “broken”, to “better”, “whole” and “restored”. I love to tell others and encourage them to get involved too, because it simply feels good to be needed. It’s leading by example and it helps get more hands and feet into our communities. At times it is hard to put aside your problems for the betterment of your community, but that is what I do all the time. My efforts are noticed by the community I live in. That’s what I show to others to encourage their own efforts. In my small Iowa community, it is important for everyone to take part in giving back to their community. It makes it home.

I grew up in a small community in rural Iowa where there is a lot of work to do. If you are bored in my family and in my school, then you are not paying attention. I love to volunteer because it gives me a sense of worth and every effort I put into something impacts others. I also learn and grow, not to mention I get to meet new people, just by participating. Activities I enjoy regularly include Mennonite Youth Fellowship Group, Brighton Lions Club, Brighton Community Church, Waco PTO and ImpactLife as a blood donor. Over the past 12 months I have logged 128 hours of community service. This past July, my youth group traveled to Pike County, Kentucky, to work with MCC Appalachia Build. This program provides building materials so that volunteers can provide the labor to make homes safe, warm and dry while creating relationships and learning about the Appalachia region. This has been my favorite service opportunity to date. Within our youth group we also sorted cans for fundraising, served numerous meals to the community and worked for a thrift store. My high school took volunteers like myself to perform music pieces we learned for music contest so residents of a local nursing home could enjoy live music and see young people. I love seeing the joy little things like this brings to others. Within high school, I am in my fourth year of choir, band and orchestra. I believe you lead by example so I am prepared for and on time for my lessons and practices. My high school is Waco Community and is located in Wayland, Iowa, and for four years I have participated in Cross Country. I love running long distance and pacing myself to perform well. I earned by first varsity letter my freshman year and it is fun to encourage the other runners. For three years, I have also been on Waco’s high school track team. In our 2022 season I was awarded the honor of being the most improved female athlete. The spring of 2025 will be my fourth year on the track team. I balance these activities with attention to my school work. My GPA is 3.92 and I am a member of Waco High School National Honor Society. I am especially passionate about kids. For fifteen months I worked at Kids Corral in Washington, IA, as an assistant teacher. This passion for kids will be my future. In college I will get the degree, licensees and experience to be the kind of elementary teacher who fosters confidence in my young students. Kids are so special and God has given me gifts of patience and endurance when it comes to teaching. My passion for education also fuels me to get a reading endorsement and to minor in Instructional Strategist I or II training, so that I am equipped for a career working with special needs students. In conclusion, whether it is savings lives with a blood donation, teaching Sunday school lesions to the preschoolers, or making popcorn and nachos for the school concession stand, I can be counted on and that is a true trait of leadership. I ask for your scholarship gift of $500 to pursue my teacher education. I will be a stellar elementary teacher someday.