I am Kiernan Clark, a recent graduate of Oxford Area High School and incoming Freshman at Messiah University, where I will be majoring in mechanical engineering. In high school I was heavily involved in my community, participating in numerous extracurriculars: serving as a leader in FCA, Vice President of my graduating class, a member of both the National Honor Society and National English Honor Society, a member of the Chester County Student Forum, an ambassador for the Morgan’s Message Foundation, in addition to volunteering as the varsity field hockey manager for four years and coaching youth lacrosse. Athletically, I swam for four years on varsity for the swimming team and was a four-time captain of my lacrosse team, where received the George A. Kruse Sportsmanship Award twice. Of the laundry list of activities I have listed, the most influential of which was becoming a leader in my school’s chapter of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Growing up in a practicing Catholic household, I had always been taught to value and serve others before myself, and FCA allowed me to do so. Having the responsibility of creating a scripture-based lesson was complicated, as I had to ensure to represent my faith truthfully while also producing something that was meaningful to high schoolers. I am eternally grateful for this, as it allowed me to grow my faith immensely. Being at the high school thirty minutes before anyone else to help set up was one of the best decisions I have made, as the time I spent watching the sun rise each Wednesday morning gave me valuable time to reflect on my life, my plans, and my aspirations. This gave me the opportunity to evaluate both my actions and the decisions I was making and whether I was glorifying the Lord through them. As my senior year progressed, I found myself using this time to contemplate where I would be attending college. Ultimately, I settled on Messiah University, as it offered me exactly what I was looking for: a vibrant Christian community, a program that would allow me to pursue my passion in engineering while also serving others, and the ability to continue playing lacrosse. My passion for engineering has constantly developed throughout my life. As a kid, I was always very curious about how things worked and loved solving problems. I was never satisfied until I found the answer to my question. However, I have come across one problem that I believe needs a better solution: prosthetics and orthotics. After watching two people in my life, Hailey and Ed, struggle with overpriced and ineffective prosthetic devices, I decided that this was the calling I was going to pursue. My cousin Hailey was born with Down Syndrome, and along with the many other medical complications that she deals with on a day-to-day basis, her ankles require custom orthotics to stabilize her feet and ankles simply to allow her to walk comfortably. Even though these braces are an absolute necessity for Hailey, they come with an extreme price tag. Similarly, my teammate’s father, Ed, struggles with a similar issue. As a former U.S. Marine and paramedic, Ed suffers from neurologic complications resulting from working at Ground Zero following the September 11th attacks. Losing most of the functions of his legs, he relies heavily on his prosthetics to support a normal lifestyle. These are often extremely heavy, causing Ed to tire quickly upon use. Because of the stories of these two individuals amongst countless others, I strive to develop prosthetics and orthotics that are more accessible and functional, as I see it as my way to serve others as Jesus has taught me to. Receiving this scholarship would allow me to pursue my passion of helping others through engineering without worrying about how I will face the financial burden of college. My family already supports my sister as she attends a private university, and I hold two part-time jobs to try and save as much for college as I can. This award would truly help me attend Messiah University, where I will become a disciple and not only grow my own faith, but also the faith of those around me.