I have always been dead set on going into the career path of social work and/or counseling, I have a huge heart for the families and children who need someone who truly care about them and want to help them. So many families in every state in the US need help creating a safe and loving environment for both the parents and the children. There are more families that need help than there is people willing to help and I want to enter into the field and be a person that truly cares and wants to help and is not just there to make money or go through their daily life. Children in the system are often really young and do not know exactly what is going on or what is going to happen to them throughout this process. These children need someone who will hold their hand and guide them throughout this scary process and let them know that they are okay and that they are protected. I want to be that person for as many children as I can. I want to be the person that the children in the system I am taking care of can call or get a hold of and feel like they can trust me enough to tell me the truth about what is going on and what they need to help them. Teens are one of the biggest groups of people who will keep what is happening to them a secret. They feel like they need to be strong and let nothing affect them, but that is not true. I want to be a person that a teenager can come to and feel protected, safe, and not judged so they are able to tell me anything they need to. I want to be the person who helps families create a loving and caring environment for everyone in the household. I want to build families up not tear them down, but sometimes families need to be separated so they can be put back together and be a stronger family. I want to be able to counsel both the parents and the children on what a healthy family unit is and what is needed for everyone to be safe and happy in the home. I majorly want to be a person for everyone in the family to come to and feel safe and not judged so I am able to see all sides and figure out how to help and fix the problem.

I have always been stuck on one career for as long as I can remember, social work and counseling have always been deep in my heart as something I want to pursue. I have had classmates, friends, and even family members who were let down by a system who does not care as much as it should about all the people that go through it on a daily basis and I have always wanted to make a change in it. I know that one person may not be able to change the entire system, but I know for a fact I can make a huge difference in the lives I touch personally. I have always had a tug on my heart strings for the people and especially the children who are put in situations they do not understand and no one is there to explain it to them or offer them a loving hand to guide them through it all. As I am extremely caring and passionate about the safety and well-being of families. I want to help families come together and rebuild to create a safe and healthy home environment where everyone in the house can thrive and be cared for. Family units are supposed to be united not become separated, but if they are needed to be separated for time so they can sort their situations out then they can always be put back together and become stronger. I am constantly sacrificing time to spend with my friends and even my family so I am able to continue to study and work a full time job so I can support myself through college. I work late nights and get up in early mornings so I am able to make the money needed for bills and to save for college tuition. I am constantly working 7 or 8 hour shifts after school and getting home past midnight, but still staying up to be able to get homework and studying done for the next day so I am not behind. I plan to continue to do this all throughout college as I am the one who will be paying for my tuition and will still need money to support myself outside of college tuition. I devote time to studying and learning so I am able to have the knowledge I need to be able to get my degree and help the children and families who need someone who truly cares to be by their side.

I have always faced something in my life trying to push me back and keep me from achieving my goals. That may be myself, sickness, family members, or just people I am around on a daily basis. No matter who or what is trying to push me away from my goals I have always kept going and refuse to step down from a challenge. I have a future goal to continue my education by attending John Brown University and majoring in Counseling and social work as I have a goal to help those who feel as if they have no one on their side. I have always been told by everyone in my life that social work is going to be something that is hard to do, but I have no problem pushing through a challenge for other people's needs. There is such a lack of people who truly care for the children and teens that they serve as a social worker and I want to be that person that someone could count on and go to for everything no matter what they are going through. I will be the person they know will not judge them but will continue to help them and work with them through all the struggles they are going to face in the hardest parts of life. Kids who have gone their entire life without someone they can trust have an extremely hard time learning to trust someone, even if that person is there to help them. But I feel extremely confident I can work my way through and break down children and teens walls to be able to get their trust and help them with their life struggles. People always need someone to be with them, even if I am not able to be with the people I am helping 24 hours a day, I can be that person they can go to on a daily basis by text, call, or coming to visit me and they will know I will keep their confidence and never judge anything that they do or that happens to them. Social work has become a major goal of mine and I plan on doing everything possible for me to be able to achieve this goal I have and be the largest help I can for the community. I want to make a major change in the community and state I am in throughout my whole life, especially for the children who really need the change and help.

I have found faith later in my life, around the age of 13 or 14. I was going through the roughest patches I have ever faced. My grandfather had passed away and was my closest family member.With my grandfather dying I had no idea what I was supposed to do. I was sad all the time while everyone else seemed to be moving on just fine while I was stuck in a hole. I knew that God was real but I never really went to church, prayed, or read my bible. My grandfather talked about Jesus some but not a lot, and hearing him speak of Jesus made me more interested in learning about what my grandfather was talking about. I started asking my friends if they knew Jesus and how often they went to church. A close friend of mine told me she goes every Sunday and Wednesday to something her church did that they called "Youth Group'". I had never been to a youth group before but after knowing that my grandfather loved Jesus I thought maybe I should love Him to, but to love Him I needed to learn about Him. I began going to a youth group on Wednesday nights with a friend of mine and was very hesitant at first at what would happen. But one night we were in worship and I had an overwhelming feeling of safety and calmness and I knew Jesus had wrapped His arms around me. I began to cry not because I was sad but because I knew I had Jesus with me 100% now. I want to use my experience to help others believe that they can have Jesus walk with them also. I want to go to college to become a mental health counselor and especially work with kids in the foster care system. Kids who are in the system are discarded a large percentage of the time, and most of the time are not shown Jesus or are just shoved into the church without really knowing what goes on or who they are there to worship. I want kids to know that someone is there for them, both me and Jesus. Knowing that someone, even if you can not see them, is there and is always listening to their problems and worries can be a large help in creating a healthy environment. I want to show kids that there is another route besides the sadness they are feeling. I want to show them that with Jesus they can help correct and maintain their mental health with Him by their side.