Growing up, people regarded me as a “Daddy’s girl.” To be honest, I hold their regard with praise. My father is the strongest person I know and has encouraged me to further my education for years. His encouragement is what caused me to strive for success throughout school. About a year ago, my father accumulated the courage to seek help with his mental health. At this moment, I knew what I wanted to do with my future. I was born in Fallen, Nevada, Eighteen years ago. Besides my father leaving for deployment for several years, I had a relatively normal upbringing. Shortly after my birth, I rejoined my family in Ohio, but without my dad. After the events of September eleventh, my dad knew he needed to serve his country. While in service, he witnessed traumatic events and hearing loss, contributing to his PTSD diagnosis about a year ago. His seeking help through the Department of Veterans Affairs spoke volumes for me. My quiet and reserved father gained a voice to tell his story. For generations, the men in my family joined the military. If it wasn’t for their sacrifice, we wouldn’t have the country we do today. Billions of men and women have died serving their country, to safeguard their family's freedoms. The men and women who didn’t lose their life in service still pay the cost of their sacrifice, by facing the mental precautions. My father and grandfather, a Vietnam veteran, face precautions of their service daily. Their struggles influenced me to want to help active duty, and veterans gain a voice during their mental health battles. My Dad struggled throughout his service with depression and recently began facing extreme anxiety and PTSD. He claimed if it wasn’t for my birth, he would’ve committed suicide. Hearing that broke my heart. My father, the strongest man I know, has suffered so much in silence. I’m grateful he has a supporting family behind him, but what about the men and women who don’t? As I applied to colleges, I had one goal in mind. I want to give back to the men and women serving the United States. I wish to encourage men and women to tell their stories from their service and help assist in their mental health battles. I plan to pursue a degree in psychology, hoping to become a psychiatrist or therapist one day. There are millions of veterans waiting for help but aren’t able to due to limited psychiatrists and therapists. Their courage deserves to be recognized, but their stories are encased by trauma and long-lasting mental effects. In my dad’s case, he didn’t enjoy speaking about his time in service, but he knew he needed help. I hope to encourage and help veterans, or active duty men and women, gain a voice and seek help throughout their mental health battles. If it wasn’t for my father, I wouldn’t be the young woman I am today. He has taught me so much about mental health awareness. His strength to seek help is what encouraged me to pursue this field. One day I hope to impact another’s life as my dad has impacted mine.

“When you’re in a position to have gotten so much, the gift at this point is giving back,” quote by Paul Stanley. Growing up, my parents always told me, “In times of doubt, give back to others. You never realize your blessings until you’re faced with another's misfortunes.” As a child, their remarks didn’t mean much to me. What could a girl in small-town Ohio possibly do? What could I do to give back to others? What do they mean about blessings and misfortunes? Once I hit middle school, I finally found the answer to my question. When I was in eighth grade, I got the opportunity to volunteer at an inner-city school. The opportunity was given by my best friend's mother who worked at Marshall STEMM Academy, located in Toledo, Ohio. She only asked for her daughter and I to volunteer once, due to the need for volunteers. It turns out, we have volunteered for over five events held by the school. I never realized the effects volunteering could have on a person until I faced them. The bittersweet looks and giggles held on children’s faces dumbfound me. It’s a feeling you can’t forget, and always want more of. Each new time I volunteer, I’m reminded of why I do it. My volunteer work at an inner-city school hit close to home for me. My parents raised me to count my blessings, and always give back to others. You never know what could be happening in others’ lives. I realized their remarks at a young age due to volunteering. I met kids my age, with similar hopes and dreams. Due to familial circumstances, they don’t receive the same opportunities I may have. I dwelled on the fact that there’s not much I can do. My parents helped me shift gears for what I could do. Even the smallest acts of service, such as volunteering, can greatly impact someone's life. Their words motivated me to make a difference, even small acts have huge effects. During my volunteer work, I met many young girls my age, and we had more in common than I would’ve thought. One being we’ll be first generational college students. Due to the burden of student loans and debt, many students fear attending college, or may not have the ability to. In my case, my family doesn’t have the funds to support my college wishes, such as the students I met volunteering. Even working throughout high school doesn’t support a year of tuition. Upon reviewing my fall tuition bill, I was almost scared away from attending college. I decided to follow my dreams instead, attending my dream school. I decided to attend college because I want to be a therapist or psychiatrist one day. My father is a veteran and has suffered PTSD since I was young, if it wasn’t for my birth, he would’ve lost his life to suicide. I hope to become a therapist at a Veteran’s Affairs clinic to help people suffering like my dad once had. Volunteering has had long-lasting effects on my life. I will never forget the students I’ve helped and hope that they achieve all of their wishes. I encourage anyone to volunteer at least once in their life, but can guarantee they’ll do it again. Volunteering helped me gain motivation to succeed, and strength to help others. In the future, I plan to volunteer at more schools and give back to my community. After all, you never realize your blessings until you’re faced with others' misfortunes.

Growing up, people regarded me as a “Daddy’s girl.” I hold their regard with praise. My father is the strongest person I know and has encouraged me to further my education for years. His encouragement is what caused me to strive for success throughout school. About a year ago, my father accumulated the courage to seek help with his mental health. At this moment, I knew what I wanted to do with my future. I was born in Fallen, Nevada, Eighteen years ago. Besides my father leaving for deployment for several years, I had a relatively normal upbringing. Shortly after my birth, I rejoined my family in Ohio without my dad. After the events of September eleventh, my dad knew he needed to serve his country. While in service, he witnessed traumatic events and hearing loss, contributing to his PTSD diagnosis about a year ago. His seeking help through the Department of Veterans Affairs spoke volumes for me. My quiet and reserved father gained a voice to tell his story. As I applied to colleges, I had one goal in mind. I want to give back to the men and women serving the United States. I wish to encourage men and women to tell their stories from their service and help assist in their mental health battles. I plan to pursue a degree in psychology, hoping to become a psychiatrist one day. Without my dad, I wouldn’t be as driven to achieve my goals. It became discouraging to attend college because I’ll be the first woman in my family to attend college. For generations, the men in my family joined the military, and the women stayed home. I wanted to break the chain and pursue a degree with my father’s encouragement paving the way for me. I held some guilt about choosing a path different from what my ancestors chose, but I still wanted to represent their courage in my future field. If not for their courage, I wouldn’t be here today. Their courage deserves to be recognized, but their stories are encased by trauma and long-lasting mental effects. There are millions of veterans waiting for help but aren’t able to due to limited psychiatrists. In my dad’s case, he didn’t enjoy speaking about his time in service, but he knew he needed help. He struggled to find it for a long time but found it through Veteran’s Affairs. I hope to become a psychiatrist through the Department of Veteran Affairs one day, eliminating my family's stereotypical norms. If not for my dad’s ambition to seek help, I wouldn’t have come as far as I did. I wouldn’t hold the values I do currently. Throughout my next adventure at Eastern Michigan University, I will remember the importance of my success and the effects I could have on others’ lives. I’m blessed to have my dad supporting me throughout all of my ventures to become successful.