After I turned two, my parents brought home a brother. He had big blue eyes, scrawny arms, and a feisty personality. He screamed a lot. He spit up a lot. He cried a lot. As his big brother, I was his first best friend no matter how loud and crabby he was. When I was four, my mom found my brother in his crib having a grand mal seizure. Over the next year, he would have several seizures and noticeable developmental delays that prompted my parents to seek care for him at the University of Iowa Children’s Hospital. Through his medical team, we learned Trent has a brain injury that will impact his entire life. Trent required many special services including physical, occupational, and speech therapy services. He also became involved in adaptive activities like baseball and soccer. Our family learned how to be his biggest cheerleaders, best teachers, and loudest advocates. Trent struggles to learn, has significant behavior problems, and takes epilepsy medication. He continues to be feisty. Being Trent’s big brother is one of the best parts of my life, however, his struggles add stress to our family. Throughout the past sixteen years, my experience of having a brother with special needs has taught me important lessons in work ethic, helped me develop strong morals, and given me a strong desire to work with special needs families. Managing his behavior, adapting tasks for him, and assisting him in communication are things I do that have helped me develop hard-working skills. Being able to think creatively to adapt activities, persevere through strong behaviors, and act confidently despite feeling inadequate are three skills that I have developed by being involved in Trent’s life. In addition to becoming a hard worker, I have developed the important morals of compassion and acceptance. My experience with special needs has given me a strong sense of awareness for those with disabilities. Expressing compassion and acceptance for those with special needs is important to me. I want everyone to feel like they are seen for the skills, talents, and abilities that they have, not for what they do not have. My goal is to pursue a career as an occupational therapist. Through this position, I want to work with special needs children and families. I know that the hard-working skills and strong morals I have developed from being Trent’s brother will make me a better therapist. I hope I make a difference in the world of people who face hardships beyond my own. I want to be the biggest cheerleader, best teacher, and loudest advocate for them.

When I look at the world, I see some people have more significant hardships than myself. My health, family, and community have given me circumstances that I understand many people long for. I hope I can make an impact on the lives of those less fortunate than myself. In this essay, I want to share about a hardship I have faced, how I worked to overcome it, and what I hope to do with the lessons I have learned. After I turned two, my parents brought home a brother who screamed and cried. When I was four, my brother had a grand mal seizure. Over the next year, he would have several seizures and noticeable developmental delays that prompted my parents to seek care for him at the University of Iowa Children’s Hospital. Through his medical team, we learned Trent has a brain injury that will impact his entire life. Trent struggles to learn, has significant behavior problems, and takes epilepsy medication. Being Trent’s big brother is one of the best parts of my life, however, his struggles add stress to our family. Throughout the past sixteen years, my experience of having a brother with special needs has taught me important lessons in work ethic and helped me develop strong morals. Managing his behavior, adapting tasks for him, and assisting him in communication are things I do that have helped me develop hard-working skills. One skill that has helped me work hard is critical thinking. To help Trent when he is upset about not being able to do something that his abled peer is able to do, I have learned to use critical thinking to find ways to accommodate his ability level. Another skill that I have developed is perseverance. There are times when getting Trent to do his chores seems impossible. He may throw a fit, call us names, or refuse to move. When this happens, I have to persevere with patience and kindness. It may require several tries, different methods, and a lot of time to get him to do something as simple as putting on shoes. Finally, I have developed a sense of confidence. When working with my brother, I approach each task with assurance and determination knowing he can do a lot more than he gives himself credit for. I have found my confidence has a ripple effect him. Critical thinking, perseverance and confidence are skills that make me a hard worker. In addition becoming a hard worker, I have developed the important morals of compassion and acceptance. My experience with special needs has given me a strong sense of awareness for those with disabilities. When I have the opportunity, I treat those with special needs with respect and kindness. I see them for what they are: real people with personalities, gifts, abilities, and feelings. Additionally, I want to make sure that I include them in conversations, activities, and relationships. At school, I try to find ways to include my special needs peers in conversations in the lunchroom and encourage them to play on the court during gym. Compassion and acceptance are morals that I feel strongly about. My goal is to pursue a career as an occupational therapist. Through this position, I want to work with special needs children and families. I know that the hard-working skills and strong moral I have developed from being Trent’s brother will make me a better therapist. I hope that I can make a difference in the world of people that are facing hardships beyond my own.

When I look at the world, I see that there are people that have more significant hardships than myself. My health, my family, and my community have given me life circumstances that I understand many people long for. I hope that in my future I can make an impact on the lives of those less fortunate than myself. In this essay, I want to share about something significant in my life that I feel has prepared me to serve others in the future. In my home, I am the oldest of four children. When I was two, my parents brought home one of my brothers. He screamed and cried a lot. When I was four, my brother had his first grand mal seizure. Over the next year, he would have several more seizures and noticeable developmental delays that prompted my parents to seek medical care for him at the University of Iowa Children’s Hospital. Through his medical team, our family learned that Trent has a brain injury that has caused his seizures and delays. These will impact him for his entire life. Trent struggles to learn, has significant behavior problems, and takes medication to control his epilepsy. Having a brother with special needs requires that I help him at home and in our community. Being Trent’s older siblings is one of the best parts of my life, however, his struggles add stress to our family. Through Trenton, I have learned about three important things: persistence, compassion, and contentment. Most tasks are hard for Trent to learn. From academic subjects to gross motor activities, Trent has to work much harder than his peers. I have watched him try over and over to meet an expectation. His hard work and effort have taught me the importance of being persistent when circumstances seem difficult. For some reason, Trent has a special awareness of how others feel. In our church, he moves locations to sit next to someone that is crying or seems upset. I have watched him play with younger kids when they are missing their parents and nurture small animals when they are scared. Observing Trent interact with others has taught me the importance of having compassion for others. Most days, Trent can be found playing with water on our back deck. He simply likes being outside in his own world. He doesn't need fancy toys, expensive gadgets, or impressive clothing to be happy. He just is happy. Seeing Trent find joy in simplicity has taught me to find contentment in what I already have. Having a sibling with special needs can sometimes feel unfair, challenging, and stressful. We encounter people who laugh at him, stare at him, and mock him. We, as a family, have to make special plans for when we travel, create accommodations for him to participate in activities, and help him manage his behaviors. Despite this adversity, being Trent's older brother has made me a better human. I know that the lessons I have learned from him will help me throughout my entire life. In the future, my goal is to pursue a career as an occupational therapist. Through this position, I want to work with special needs children and their families. I know the lesson I have learned from Trent will make me a better therapist. In some way, I hope that I can make a difference in the world of people that are facing hardships beyond my own.

When I was little, I wanted to play football but mom was adamantly against it. She said, “You’re too small. One hit and you would be done.” For many years, I ran cross country instead of football. However, my senior year I convinced my mom to let me try playing. On the first day of camp, I was full of nerves. I was stepping on to the field with guys that had been playing since they were in kindergarten. I was a senior playing for the first time. Despite this, my desire to play did not waver. After a deep breath, I did the hardest part: taking the first step. I was brave enough to try. Over the course of the next few weeks, I watched my teammates, listened to my coaches, and asked a lot of questions to learn how to be a football player. The next few months we had long practices in the heat that involved conditioning, strength training, and running plays. Some of the most difficult parts of being a new football player was learning the plays, the movements of each position, and the strategies behind each decision. It was hard. Some days were really hard. One of those days, I came home physically exhausted, mentally overwhelmed, and ready to quit. But I didn’t let the size of the mountain stop my climb to the top. I was brave enough to keep going. This experience taught me three important lessons. First, I learned to persevere when things are difficult. Despite how hard it was to start football as a senior, I did not quit. Second, I learned a lesson in humility. In order to learn, I had to depend on the knowledge and experience of others. Finally, I learned that trying new things is an adventure worthwhile. When I stepped on to the field for the first game in my uniform and pads with the lights and the crowd, I realized it was worth it. I am brave enough to finish. Along with my three younger brothers, my family loves to play and watch sports. In club and school, I have participated in cross country, football, soccer, and basketball. Recreationally, I enjoy playing pickleball, tennis, and golf. My family is a huge a fan of the Kansas Jayhawks, Kansas City Chief, Sporting KC, and Kansas City Royals. We spend lots of time connecting while watching our favorite teams play. In addition to sports, I also play the trumpet in band, work at the YMCA, and volunteer in youth activities in my community and church. My family, my participation in sports and my work with youth have inspired me to pursue a degree in occupational therapy. My younger brother has developmental and intellectual needs that were met through a variety of therapeutic services including speech therapy, physical therapy, and occupational therapy. While growing up, I observed his therapy appointments and, at times, was able to participate with him. Through this, I could see firsthand the impact that therapists can have, not only on the child receiving services but on the entire family. Because of his therapy services, our family was able to help him grow, adapt, and thrive in life. Other experiences that have influenced my academic path are my employment with the YMCA and my volunteer work in youth sports programs. Teaching swimming lessons, lifeguarding at the pool, and coaching youth sports have shown me that working with kids comes naturally to me. Finding ways to connect with and engage kids in activities is something I truly enjoy.