Looking back on my 32 years of life, I feel proud of how far I have come. I am confident in my abilities and excited to share that I will start veterinary school at UC Davis in the fall of 2024. Although becoming a veterinarian was never an option for me in the past, my immense love and passion for animals have led me to this path. Despite facing financial constraints that prevented me from attending college, I did not give up. Instead, I had to devise a new plan for my future, leading me to live and work overseas. With my sister's support, I studied beauty and massage therapy for a year. Although it was not my dream career, I pursued it vigorously and enthusiastically. I continued to learn new things and eventually became a qualified massage therapist, with the opportunity to work on various cruise ships. This journey allowed me to see unique places and meet interesting people. However, my passion for animal welfare remained strong, and I loved visiting animal sanctuaries across the globe. Working on a cruise ship for nine months was too challenging, and I missed my family. Therefore, after another contract at sea, I applied for Emirates Airlines and got the call to work as a flight attendant in Dubai. The skills I learned as a massage therapist and flight attendant have been advantageous to me till today. I learned anatomy, safety, security, and dealing with different personalities and situations. Although I enjoyed flying for an international airline, I could not forget my love for animals, and my desire to help them is what led me to pursue a career in veterinary medicine. I attended community college and earned two associate degrees to achieve my dream. I used every opportunity I could get and applied for grants and scholarships to help fund my schooling. I knew I had to get at least 500 hours of animal experience, so I asked around at veterinary hospitals if they could help me with this and teach me in the process. I started working at a small animal veterinary clinic, where I learned to restrain animals and give them vaccines. As my confidence improved, so did my skills. I was learning new terminology and taking notes on anything and everything. Writing everything down, asking questions, and researching were very helpful. Along with this experience, I worked at a local wildlife rehabilitation center, where I could get up close to animals such as black bears, coyotes, raccoons, and a bald eagle. While pursuing my bachelor's degree, I worked at night as a kennel attendant and a research assistant at my university. I have gained vast experience working alongside passionate people who believe in animal welfare as much as I do. You can tell who loves their work, and I always compliment everyone on their strengths, how I appreciate what they do, and how they are helping my veterinary dream come true. As I move forward to vet school, I would assist others in staying passionate and learning to improve their lives and the lives of the animals who need us the most.

I am thrilled to share my experience of how mental health can affect academic performance and personal life. During my university years, I went through a challenging period in my relationship which turned out to be emotionally abusive. This made my academic performance and emotions suffer. Despite the good things in our relationship, I decided to walk away, and it was the best decision I ever made. It's crucial to walk away from anything or anyone that harms your mental health because your mind can be your best friend or worst enemy. As a woman, I had been dependent on someone for a long time, and it made me believe that I always needed someone to save me. However, that is far from the truth. I knew I had the power to achieve great things, but he always brought me down with comments that made me doubt myself. After leaving him, I gained mental clarity, and my academic performance improved. I graduated from university with honors and am now pursuing a DVM degree at one of the top schools in the US. To maintain a healthy mind and body, I follow a list of values that I have put on my door. This list includes exercise, nutritious food, sunlight, enough sleep, positive material consumption, and surrounding myself with supportive family and friends. I am committed to these values to ensure that my mind and body receive the necessary ingredients to function properly. Additionally, I talk to my older sister, my role model since childhood, about anything and everything, which helps me create a healthy headspace. As a woman, I know I am capable of being successful every day. Social media may make us feel like we have not figured it out yet, but that's far from the truth. I am doing a great job, and I have a support system that encourages me and reminds me of my strength. I am in a better headspace now and have more time to be with friends and build longer-lasting relationships. I believe that it is important to have healthy relationships, whether it be with your family members, friends, or colleagues. As I continue my journey in Veterinary School, I will make it a priority to exercise my body and keep my mind healthy by surrounding myself with people who bring joy into my life. While there is much that we cannot control, we can control what we do right now and who we spend time with. I have the power to accomplish great things, and I am determined to make the most of every opportunity that comes my way.

I’ve had a handful of career paths that didn’t bring me much joy, but veterinary medicine has been the most rewarding for me. Every day, I’m still reminded that the field that I’ve chosen is the best path for me, however, it was a path that I only decided later on in life. Growing up in a poor family in South Africa, I didn’t have a lot of role models to look up to. I was always told that my grades weren’t good enough and that I should pick an easy career. It was a struggle for my mom and dad, a kindergarten teacher and retired policeman who became a fisherman. Some days were very difficult when I wouldn’t even have lunch to take with me to school. The financial situation of our family took a toll on me mentally; however, I still remember what made me happy when I was younger: the ocean, my love for nature, and my love for animals. I grew up very close to the beach, and when life became hard, I would go for a run. My running partner was our beloved family dog called Flekkie, who got her name from a white mark she had on the back of her neck. Flekkie and I would have our afternoon runs to the beach. She loved climbing onto high brick walls and jumping like an antelope in bushes. My time with her was special and we always enjoyed the outdoors together. When I left for college, which my sister helped pay for, it was sad for me to leave her behind. One weekend, when my parents came to visit me. They told me that Flekkie had wandered off and hadn’t come home. My eyes welled up with tears. I couldn’t believe that she just decided not to come home and thought it to be very strange for her. My dad also said that her back legs were beginning to give out. After getting over the sadness, and years later, I began to wonder about this. My dad is a person who if he sees a dog with any ailment, would take it to the vet and have it euthanized. I realized that this is what my dad must’ve done. My anger for how he dealt with it, turned into some understanding. My dad didn’t have the money for further treatment for Flekkie. He was merely trying to spare my feelings and hide the fact that he wasn’t able to pay for her treatment. Up until 6 years ago, I had the revelation that veterinary medicine is a career that I wanted to get into. I wanted to be there for families who are dealing with financial trouble and who aren’t able to afford proper veterinary care for their pets. When I complete my DVM degree, I can see myself working for underprivileged and unhoused communities. I want to be the doctor that people turn to who have no other option but to euthanize their pets. Death isn’t always the option, but I understand why this could be the only option. Having a pet like Flekkie, helped me decide as an adult to pursue my dream of becoming a veterinary doctor. Without her, I would not have the empathy that I have today. She was my best friend, one who loved running on the beach as much as I did, and she will always be remembered. My education at UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine would be dedicated to all animals that I once owned and to my family.

Working as a veterinary assistant at my local veterinary clinic allows me the opportunity to meet many dog breeds personally. There are some breeds that you just know, it’s going to be a pleasure to help assist with the doctor, and there are others, who will give you a hard time. Being knowledgeable of a dog breed's characteristics and personality type is very important, and there are a few reasons why it is important to preserve purebred dog breeds and ensure their health for future generations. Knowing the characteristics of a dog breed can be very beneficial in many fields, such as veterinary medicine, dog sports, police service dogs, service animals, dog shows, and more. Dogs are useful in many ways, such as for protection, hunting, herding, aiding the disabled, and for companionship. They can offer either a single purpose in these fields, or have a dual purpose, but without a doubt, they will always have our back and stay man’s best friend. Over 200 years which started from wolves, humans have artificially selected certain characteristics in dogs. It is important for the preservation of purebred dog breeds because we know what to expect when we encounter or utilize them. We as humans, have enough knowledge and experience to know what to expect out of their behavior and temperament, or even health. In the uses I have mentioned before, professionals can use their knowledge of each purebred dog and utilize their characteristics or treat the dog if they get sick to the best of their ability. Knowing the characteristics of a purebred dog helps ensure predictability which helps us to treat their diseases correctly, which would help to ensure their survival for future generations to come. I’ve dealt with a variety of mixed breeds as an assistant, and they could sometimes be a little unpredictable. You just don’t know as much about what breed type they are and how they might react to something such as trimming their nails or drawing their blood. Knowing their breed, helps us to treat dogs in the best possible way, but also in the safest way, so no one can get hurt. Some negative things might be attached to continuously over-breeding purebred dogs, such as loss of genetic diversity or genetic diseases such as hip dysplasia, however, I think that the pros outweigh the cons, and we need to preserve purebred dog lineages for future generations to come.

Education undoubtfully plays an important role in any student's life. It has become a big part of my life as of two years ago when I decided to go into the medical field to become a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine. To pursue a career as a vet will allow me to fulfil my life goal, of providing affordable health care to marginalized and poor communities in the United States and to ultimately help eliminate animal abuse, strays and surrendering of helpless animals to shelters. Without proper education, I WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO REACH MY DREAM AND FULFIL MY DESTINY TO TAKE CARE OF ALL ANIMAL LIFE. My dream to pursue a career in Veterinary Medicine did not come overnight. Before the start of college, I was pursuing a career abroad as a massage therapist and thereafter a flight attendant. I was lucky enough to see the world but unfortunately, I also saw too much and was hurt by the fact that people still treat animals, like animals. This made me angry and fearful of what we are creating for future generations to believe what is normal. We still live in an age where animals are savagely hunted and mined for their commodities and slowly vanishing from this planet. I believe that an education can provide me with the necessary ammo of knowledge to help animals in need and protect them of course. When you tell anyone that you have to study for 8 years consecutively before you can start your dream job, they immediately seek out ways and excuses why you should NOT go this route. They say "It's too late for you now, you're 29!" or "Wouldn't you rather want to become a vet tech? It's much faster?" Frankly, I couldn't care less what people think about my plans. People have done it before in the past and have trudged the path that I am currently pursuing and all possibly have heard the same old tune. To hear those who do not believe that it could be done actually empowers me. If it was so simple then anyone could've done it. Dedicating almost a decade of my life is the least what I can do. Education can enable me to put my destiny in my own hands, to meet very important people who are willing, like myself, to make the world a better place to live in. Education is what sets us apart from the dreamers to the believers and doers. The role of education for me is continuous and gratifying. I am happy to know that as a vet, there will always be opportunities to learn more and do great things for the industry and for mankind. I'm pleased to know that one day I will be able to help sick, mistreated animals via my education which is a reward in itself.

Meet Sequoia! While passing through a small town to stop for gas, myself and my husband saw this young puppy who was busy being abandoned by a family on the side of the road. It was late at night and we didn't want this poor puppy to be left alone, so we decided to rescue her. We were actually on our way to go camping in Sequoia National Park. It was our destiny to save this young, beautiful puppy and we saw it fit to call her Sequoia as she really loved the camping trip with us. @tish_thedish @sequoiacalifornia

I am currently working on acquiring the necessary practical hours needed to apply for veterinarian school. I've been a full-time student at San Bernardino Valley College for two years and I'm in the process of applying to transfer to a 4-year university next year fall. My plan is to transfer to the University of California, Riverside and start with my practical hours, however, it will require me to drive to specific locations, which is why the Amplify Continuous Learning Grant will help me tremendously. My life wasn't always as planned out like this before. I came from a poor family with four children. My parents would always work hard for us to be able to finish Highschool but when it was my turn to graduate, I realized that my family would not be able to support me through college. This had an impact on me because I've always had a passion to learn more and further my education. Because of financial reasons, my plan to go to a university came to an end. I decided to try beauty school, which my sisters took out a loan to pay and thereafter worked onboard cruise ships as a massage therapist to continue to learn and to see the world. It wasn't my dream job, which was always working with animals but I got to see how amazing the world was that we lived in! I was exposed to so many new places, cultures and beauty, yet with all this, I became exposed to the actual real-world which was not so picture perfect. I started to see the impact of people and tourism on our planet and how we take things for granted. I visited an elephant "sanctuary" in Sri Lanka on a layover about five years ago. It was heartbreaking to see how they were chained in their own home and how people were still dying to ride them. This made me realize how selfish all of us are and that those selfish actions have deadly consequences on our animals. It made me feel that each one of us are responsible for where we live and how we treat its inhabitants, human or not. I saw this as an opportunity to go back to school and work on skills that could one day make me into a successful Veterinary Doctor. I want to share my wisdom and knowledge about animals so people can make better choices to help stop the exploitation, death and extinction of animals. To be able to get there, I have to complete a minimum of 500 practical hours, supervised with a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine. If I am chosen for the grant, I will use it wisely for transportation and meals, and it will allow me to go to any location in Southern California to look for experience. The Amplify Continuous Learning Grant will help me to regain the confidence I once had to keep learning and to help solidify my dreams as a Veterinary Doctor.

Growing up in South Africa has made me appreciate how important mother nature is and how dependant we are on her. I was blessed for growing up close to the beach and a couple of hours' drive away from seeing the Big Five, which is now on the brink of extinction. Never did I imagine that these creatures that have grazed in the wild for thousand years would become endangered by people. They don't have a choice about who is taking their land away. We are the ones that should be taking care of them, not push them towards extinction which is why I've decided to go to school and become a Veterinary Doctor. I've always admired animals and what our role should be to protect them. Growing up, I've always been surrounded by dogs, birds, and cats. It was human nature to be kind and caring towards them because they've provided me with so much joy. They don't require much but they deserve all of the love and respect in the world. I'm very passionate about seeing that the well-being of animals is adhered to. It is a global concern that there are species driven to extinction. They are a part of a bigger web of species and when a species is lost, the effects it has on the ecosystem could be devastating. It could cause the whole vegetation to diminish that benefitted from the extinct species, which on a broader scale, can have an effect on our climate, water, and food resources. We should treat every species as vital because when they're gone, the domino effect of their absence can have a negative impact on the planet and on us. When our resources are affected, we all have to pay the price, which is why a single species lost can have a major impact globally and we should all take responsibility. There is still hope to conserve endangered species before it's too late. Some useful strategies and tactics that have been implemented to protect endangered species are stronger importation rules on trophy hunting, better security, and guard against poaching of endangered species, and education focused on the protection of endangered species. By controlling the numbers of a certain species, hunting for conservation has also had some positive impact on endangered species. Conservationists require a lot of funding to take care of endangered species. The government should step up and help by providing funds to organizations that protect species from extinction. From a practical standpoint, we as the community should all educate ourselves about the importance of conservation and the protection of endangered species. I am doing my part by getting my degree so I can apply for Veterinary School. I feel that this will give me the opportunity to work in the field and by reversing the negative effects that we've been having on their health. Whether we like it or not, we should think about how we can conserve energy, land, and how to produce food without having an impact on the animals that we share the planet with. We can lessen our impact by using less energy, growing our own produce, donating money, volunteering at shelters and zoos, and growing awareness in your community about this issue. Research about local programs about nature and the environment, such as clean-ups, can also be a great help in taking responsibility and taking care of the habitats of vulnerable species. As an environmentalist and vegan, I believe that small changes can make a great impact. We all have to be on the same page because we are all responsible for the planet that we live on. It is our job and privilege to take care of those that can not protect themselves. If we want to see the next generations to succeed, we have to be the start of change, even how impossible it might seem from the start. "It all might seem impossible until it's done" is what Nelson Mandela once said and are the great words that inspire me to do my life's work. We can start locally by making the changes and not giving up on our dreams, of not only creating a better future for ourselves but for everyone because that is why we've all been placed on this earth together.