Education has shaped my goals and where I see myself and my potential. I was not planning on going to college until recently when my education grew my passion for being an entrepreneur. I want to get involved in owning my own business. I will start small by going to college and beautician school and be a beautician. But then my large dream that is ever growing is to own a dude ranch with a bed and breakfast included. I was not going to attend college because school is difficult for me. I can only read at around a fifth-grade level, and this has always held me back from thinking about pursuing a higher education. There are so many programs and resources out there that can help people like me. We live in a technology world, why not utilize what is out there to benefit those who have educational challenges and yet want to be successful. This year in particular I have had hurtles that I have had to make it over. When I took some necessary high school courses and that teacher did not and continues to not follow my IEP often. This has taught me to always fight for what I deserve and what I am supposed to have given to me. I have learned who I have around me that wants to see me succeed and who will fight with me to get what I need to put me on the same level as other students to make me successful. It is important to be able to pinpoint the good people in the world and surround yourself with the right people. I plan on surrounding myself with the right friends and people who will always have my best interest at heart. I have ADHD and my focus also has been a challenge for me to overcome. Do I have it all in control now? No, but I do know what helps and to be successful I need to utilize the times that I am focused. I plan of doing schoolwork in between classes while my brain is in school focus mode. I feel like I cannot fight my ADHD, but I can utilize the times that it is not at the forefront. Utilize the time that I am reading and my brain is willing to work on a project instead of trying to force my brain to focus. I will utilize my education to its fullest. I know I will have to work harder than everyone else and do not plan on squandering this opportunity. I want to make a better future for myself and the family I want to have one day by making my dreams come true of being an entrepreneur and becoming successful. I will be able to impact other people's lives in the process. I feel like being a beautician I will also be therapy to some people. But owning the horse farm, people who visit will also get a chance to feel a little bit of relief mentally. They will be able to relax and get some much-needed horse therapy. But also, I want to be able to send people to resources when I come in contact with people who need resources in one area or another. Mental Health is impacting the world around us in a negative way. I feel like in my future I want to impact it in a positive way by helping give people the therapy or direction to resources that they need. I do not take my higher education lightly which is why I want to be fully funded so that I have all the time I need to focus on succeeding. Through getting scholarships to fund my dream of a higher education, the sky is the limit. I can have time to volunteer and give back to a horse farm. I can have more time to help contribute to the powerlifting team that I am going to be a part of. I can help people I come in contact with find the resources they may need to make their life more positive, safe and impactful. Lastly but not least, by being fully funded by scholarships and financial aid I will be able to take the burden off my family. This last year, my father had an eye removed in December. It was found that he had melanoma of behind the eye. There were two tumors in the eye. They are worried that some cancer cells were left behind so they want to do a second surgery to remove more to make sure they get rid of all the cancer cells. But we have had a family trip for my Nationals powerlifting competition for over a year now. So, in order to watch me compete, he is going to postpone surgery until after we return from our trip. By him doing this for me, I need to do something in return, I will get enough scholarships to cover my higher education so that I don't have any burden directed on my family that is already going through enough.

When I went to Davenport University to visit. I was seeing about joining the powerlifting team. I love how the coach put it. First, mental and physical health, then education, then powerlifting. You have to make sure you are healthy through and through in order to contribute positively to society as a whole, to your personal education, and if you are part of a sports team to that team. Mental health is more than just a small thing. Mental health encompasses your thoughts of yourself, your capabilities, your confidence, your thoughts of how other people view you, etc. If any of these aspects are negative, it will affect the education most likely negatively. As a student, without a positive passion and confidence in the choice of the field of study, most will not succeed. Mental health has become more and more in the news. So many people are not able to find adequate mental health services or flat out cannot afford the appropriate services. Also, there are many out there who are ignorant to the topic of mental health and judge people for not being mentally healthy. Which also leads some people to not get the help that they need. Some to the point of feeling like this world would be a better place without them. I personally go to a therapist and feel like everyone should have someone that they feel like they can talk to. More than just a friend but a professional who can help at a higher level. Even just by getting some of the information out helps a person's mental health. I advocate for mental health in my community by speaking out to friends and family about the importance of their mental health. I express in my school how there are people who are there to see us succeed and it is important to know who those people are. By knowing this you know who you can go to in a time of crisis. Or even who you can send someone if they are in a time of crisis. I feel like my advocacy will grow when I get to college. I will have more people to talk to and grow in a relationship with and influence. You do not have to be out in public speaking out on mental health, it is also important to grow in relationships with people in order to make them comfortable with confiding in you. In turn, this can open doors to direct people to the right resources that will help them grow positively in their mental health.

I am a big advocate for affordable childcare. I know a lot of women spend most of their pay to pay for childcare. It is not worth some mothers to work because their check would go straight to just paying for their child to be cared for. So, onto my solution to this problem. Where is a lot of money spent? Renting halls and event centers, from birthday parties, anniversaries, weddings, etc. My family was looking for a place for my brothers open house and I was hearing all of the cost of the different places that were not even big and fancy. My idea is to open an event center with a daycare center inside. This way the event center would fund most of the business costs. In addition, the childcare costs could be affordable for families. Whether there is a standard low cost or a cost that is decided depending on income, that would have to be figured out. I believe that we need more event centers for people to get together and celebrate with family and friends. We live in a social media world which we have so many friends and acquaintances online. But how often are we getting together in real life with these people to speak face to face. To sing, to dance, to play games, etc. With the rising cost of food and products in this economy the cost of childcare just continues to rise with it. Because those working and running those centers in that field have to make money and put food on their tables too. But as they continue to rise more and more mothers will not have to luxury to work. They will have to find other ways to make money while being a mother which I do not feel bad about, but I also feel all woman should be able to be out in the workforce if they want to be. I feel like more problems that involve money need and can be solved by looking at where the most money is being spent. Can we put something that money is being spent on with something that needs to have money saved on together and solve the problem at hand? Why have we not thought of these solutions before? Why do the people with billions of dollars not want to invest in ways to help the lower class save money and survive? I know if I make a lot of money in the future, I will find ways to help and give back. I am not here on earth to just sit back and live comfortably while others are stuggling.

School has always been a challenge and a struggle for me. I have ADHD and I am delayed in reading. I dread school a lot of the time. I have to work ten times harder than a lot of my classmates. I have an IEP and there are some teachers that do not want to support me and my success and see me succeed. Some of those teachers do not even want to follow my IEP. This year I finally had an opening in my schedule to venture out from the necessary classes. I decided to try Ceramics. I did not realize how easy it would come to me and how much I would fall in love with the art and creativity of it all. I have enough work that I could fill a table of just my work that I have made this year. Mrs. Keller is more than just a teacher; she is an influential person in my life. She cares more about her students than just their ability to do well in her class. She cares about the whole person and where they are and where they are going in life. I feel like I have been able to thrive by growing in a student teacher relationship with her. It has been an outlet throughout the many stresses that come with so many lasts in my senior year. She has grown my creativity and in her class the rest of the stresses of school are gone. She is one of the people that I can count on to help advocate for what I should be provided because it is documented in my IEP. She even sat in on my final IEP for high school. She always has so many positive things to say about me and I feel like I need those complements. I need to know what I am doing well and the reminder that I can continue to grow and thrive all through life if I put my mind to it. Lastly, I wish I would have taken her classes sooner. She has molded me in my senior year, but what would it have looked at if I would have taken her class my freshman. She is and always be one of my fondest teachers. I can even see myself years to come to stop in to see her and chat about what I have accomplished next. That says a lot because without her I would never fathom walking back into that building after gruaduation.

I have not always been a YGIG which is why I believe I am the perfect candidate for this scholarship. It was not long ago that I did not think college was in my future due to my finances and due to my reading delay. I believe recently I have and continue to become a more well-rounded YGIG. I have started to advocate for what I deserve for my education, and I have grown in my self confidence in powerlifting. Now I can see my dreams, I can see myself achieving more than I ever believed that I could. With this scholarship, it will take me one step closer. I am a female powerlifter! I was pulled into the sport, 5 years ago. Previous to powerlifting I was a gymnast turned into a female wrestler. My freshman year of high school I went into USA national powerlifting competition as the underdog. I came out on top, taking 1st place in my weight class. Then my sophomore year I took second place at Nationals. My junior year I was in the highest weight class and the lightest in the weight class. I pulled 4 PRs that day and took 10th, which was amazing. This year I am going into Nationals in the middle of the pack. I am looking at pushing to my best and making it to the top 3 in order to be invited to compete in Worlds this year. I have already signed with Davenport University's ever-growing powerlifting team for the fall. A challenge that I have been dealing with my whole educational career is ADHD and a reading delay. The older I get the more I have realized, as much as it is a weakness it is also a superpower. It has helped me to learn who is there to support me and who is not. Who do I need to talk to and what do I need to do in order to get the support I need in place in order to help myself reach my full potential. I admire and look up to Amy from Heartland. I know it is corny and that she is a fictional character. But I strive to be like her when I get older with owning a dude ranch and working with horses. Horses are my passion and my therapy. I have not had a huge opportunity to have a ton of time working with horse due to my family's financial situation. I would love to one day help make it, so more children have an opportunity to be around horses. This scholarship would help my journey by funding toward my room and board. So that I can be on campus and learn and grow with other students. It will help me not have to work so much so that I can focus on my education and powerlifting. With me having a reading delay I will need more time to get things accomplished to succeed at my fullest which will be hard if I have to work a lot. My team is fully funded so a blessing with that is that I will have gear and all athletic needs funded but do need assistance in help with housing costs. Something else I would like to share is some of the hardship that has happened this school year. My dad had an eye removed in December. We found out that it was two tumors and is melanoma of behind the eye. He was asked to have a second surgery to remove more in order to make sure that they got all of the cancer cells. He explained to the doctor that he has a trip planned for a long time to go to Texas and watch me compete in USA powerlifting Nationals. The doctor told my dad to go and enjoy Texas and watch me compete. So when we return, he will have his second surgery on April 3, Good Friday. I am a powerlifter and will be powerlifting with Davenport University's powerlifting team in college. I got a small athletic scholarship of $3000 which I am super appreciative of, but I am still short over $10000 a year. Which is around the cost of room and board. With my team being fully funded that has given me the vision to become fully funded myself in order to relieve that stress off my family and myself. Being a student athlete means I am more than just an individual; I am a teammate! Powerlifting is therapy! Without powerlifting I do not think I would be so confident in reaching for my dreams and goals. Which is why I believe I am the right candidate for this scholarship.

I believe my parents have tried their best to teach me about finances and budgeting your money. I feel it is important to pay your bills first. Then figure out what other expenses are a necessity. For example, how much money will I need for gas until I get paid next? How much money am I going to need for other necessities such as food and toiletries. Then put a little in the savings just in case an emergency expense comes about. Then and only then is there play money/non-necessity spending. I do not believe in taking out credit or loans unless there is no other option and it is something that you cannot survive without. My family has always been lower income, but I have always seen my parents make sure we have everything we need. I have been given great opportunities and experiences with my parents choosing to give me them instead of spending that money on themselves. I feel like this has shown me just a glimpse into how I will have to budget my income to help reach my goals for my future. I plan on attending Davenport University and being a part of their ever-growing powerlifting team. My goal as well is to get enough scholarship money to help take that stress off of my parents and me. By being fully funded by government grants and a variety of scholarships I can focus on my degree and powerlifting. I plan on getting a bachelor's degree to help me reach my big dream goal of owning a dude ranch/horse farm. In order to get to my big dream of the dude ranch, I know I will have to do something else in order to build up the funds correctly to be successful and stay successful. Which in addition to my bachelor's degree I plan on getting a beautician's license. So then to start I plan on starting out by being a beautician in order to build up a savings. Once I get enough savings I can then and only then embark on my big dream. I do not want to jump into it and fail. I want to go into this future with my eyes wide open to how much money I will have to have to run the dude ranch. I plan on throughout my degree coming up with a business plan including all of the funds in the different areas will be needed to run regularly. As well as how much funds may be needed for the unexpected. For these reasons, I believe I am a great candidate for this scholarship. My family is low income. My father just had an eye removed and found out he has cancer. I have a dream that finances will be a huge role in its success or failure.

Animal care and welfare is a strong topic that I advocate for. I believe there are not enough conservation efforts to help speak out for animal welfare. We need more standards and specifications for what is appropriate for animal care. How many animals should a family be able to have? Why is there not more education on animal care? Not enough people are helping with conservation efforts. I want to help conserve land for animals to be able to roam and enjoy life. Instead, we have too many people wanting to live up to the jones. They want to tear down more and more forests so that they can build bigger and bigger homes and resorts. Which I feel is selfish and unkind to the populations of animals who homes we are destroying. Through a higher education I feel it will grow my confidence to be able to speak out for the animals and help to conserve their homes. I want to own a dude ranch/horse farm. I want to take in horses that may have been neglected or unwanted. I want to help them toward a healthy life. I want to be therapy for them. Also, i want to have people stay at my ranch to help them enjoy the horses and the land. By providing them with relaxation, therapy, food, etc. I feel like my farm would be a great get away to help people with their mental health, especially those that may be stressed or even in a mental breakdown. I love all animals. I feel like too many people think it is a good idea to get animals. But too many of them do not have the time, knowledge or expertise to care for these animals. Some choose to leave them for long periods of time. Some feed them too little or too much. Some do not have the finances to keep up with the necessary care that the animals need. Some take in too many animals and do not have the knowledge to care for them correctly. I envision myself becoming an advocate for animals being provided appropriate care. A higher education will give me the experience to be able to speak out for the animals. How to teach people what they need to know before they take in animals and how many animals would be appropriate for a certain person or family. Thank you for considering me for this scholarship. I promise to use it to its fullest and keep you updated in my achievements in this field.

For years I did not think that I would even attend college. I have ADHD and am behind in reading. Now my dream is to attend college and powerlift collegiately. I have been accepted into Davenport university and on to the powerlifting team. The relationships that I have formed have molded me into the person I am today. I cannot wait to join a new team and work together to reach for our dream of becoming National champions. I want to pursue a higher education to obtain the knowledge and expertise to run a Dude Ranch/Horse Farm. I want to be able to feed my visitors meals, as well as take them on trail rides on my horses. I want to help utilize my passion for horses by serving others and in turn possibly growing their passion for horses as well. I believe we all are called to serve in one way or another and I believe this will be just one of the ways I will be able to serve in the future. My faith has shaped me to help serve others through volunteering. I volunteered for Upwards by assistant coaching Cheer. This program brought children and families into our church for weeks. It helped direct them to resources that they may not have found otherwise. Also, some of these families found church home in our church. This program taught children confidence and knowledge whether in Cheer or Basketball. I love horses and have always loved horses. I volunteered on a horse farm called Equine Escape. I took care of horses, helped build horses confidences, and helped run meet ups. Meet ups are where children with RAD, ADHD, PTSD and other mental disabilities would interact with the horses to help provide a therapy in sorts. This scholarship would help toward my vision of being financially covered for college. In order to not be a financial burden to my family right after my father was diagnosed with melanoma cancer and lost an eye. God has made me for a purpose. He made me different. Not much comes easy for me, I have to work for everything. But I believe that the most worthwhile achievements come through hard work and determination. I will utilize this scholarship to the fullest and will stay in communication by sharing even my smallest achievements. As well as pay it forward one day by providing someone else who is low income with this kind of opportunity.

I have volunteered as an assistant cheer coach. I volunteered for two years. This program was called Upwards and was an outreach to the community. The program helps to bring in children from the community and help them cheer or play basketball. It teaches the children how to be a part of a group and how to follow directions and be successful together. It also brings families in and helps to get some of these families the resources that they may not have found otherwise. I loved working with the young girls to help build their confidence in performing in front of an audience. I also volunteered at Equine Escape which is a horse farm. They help take in horses and other animals and use them for therapy for children with a lot of disabilities from PTSD, RAD and others. I believe different kinds of therapy should be readily available for children to help them mentally. When mental health is in check it helps people achieve more in other areas. I believe it is important for everyone to give back and pay it forward. I will continue to give back to whatever community I am in even while in college. I believe too many people are selfish and take all they can for themselves. I believe we should be appreciative of what we are provided and when able should always pay it forward. By receiving this scholarship and others I plan on paying it forward when I am financially able.

ADHD and Reading are my challenges and continue to be my challenges. I have come to realize that I can do hard things. These weaknesses shape who I am today by reminding me that through advocating for my needs I can do anything. This year, my senior year, I had a teacher for two classes who chooses not to follow my IEP. He chooses to not give me the supports to help me be successful. It has pushed me to speak out for what I need in order to help me succeed. I have worked hard in knowing who is there for me to help me succeed. Those are the people I can go to and get the supports I need and make sure this teacher is made to follow my IEP. Which will continue to benefit me in college and throughout the rest of my life. It was not long ago that I believed my ADHD and lack of reading skills is what would hold me back from attending higher education. But I want to show other students with ADHD and reading difficulties that they can attend college and achieve their dreams. This world is full of passionate people and by supporting each other and working together I believe everyone has the right to succeed. A higher education will help me reach my highest potential. It will allow me to follow my dream of competing collegiately in college for Powerlifting. I believe that Powerlifting helps my mental health which then crosses over to help me be the best me I can be. If your mental health is in check, I feel it can help you through other challenges and weaknesses. I know it will not always be easy, but I also believe that the hardest things we go through in life are the most worthwhile. A higher education will help me achieve more knowledge and experience in order to be financially and personally successful in my dream of one day owning a dude ranch. It will help me be able to continue to say I can do hard things even though I may have challenges and weaknesses. Everyone should have the right to shoot for the stars. Please consider me for your scholarship. I promise I will do all I can to make you proud. I will utilize the money to its full potential. I will stay in communication every time I succeed and achieve something new that I would not have been able to without the funds.