Cancer has impacted my family in ways I never truly thought would happen to me. Life is interesting that way, everything can be perfect and then the floor completely falls from under you. That is exactly what happened to my family in February 2025 when my mom was officially diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer. Growing up my mom was always the strongest and most resilient person I have ever known. She showed me what love and kindness look like, no matter what challenges life brings. She dedicated her career supporting students who came from different home environments. These were students who needed extra care, patience, and understanding. Even when our own family faced hardships, she never stopped giving to others. This was deeply inspiring to me, and led me to my own career goals of helping people too. She was truly my best friend and spending time with her was my favorite thing. At the beginning of 2025 there were clear signs that something was wrong, but for about two months it was not fully recognized that she was sick. I can remember the exact moment my parents sat my brother and I down and told us the truth, that it was cancer. Even in that moment she remained strong for us. She still held us while we cried, and told us everything was going to be okay. Despite her own fear and pain, she never stopped caring for my brother and I. Over the next few months, her health rapidly deteriorated. Watching the woman who raised me become so weak was heartbreaking. When you're in your twenties, you understand that your parents will not be there forever, but you never expect to lose them so soon. We unfortunately were only given three more months with her before she passed away on May 12, 2026. My brother and I came to the heartbreaking realization that we will spend more years missing her than we even got to know her. Grief is something you cannot fully understand until you’ve experienced a loss so severe. It completely changes you as a person, your perspectives, priorities, and your understanding of how short life truly can be. Losing my mom has truly been the most painful experience of my life, but it has strengthened my own resilience. I can honestly say that I am not the same person I was eleven months ago, but I have a different outlook on what I want for my future. I want to continue her legacy of leading my life with kindness and care, and to support others even in difficult times. She was committed to supporting me in continuing my graduate studies. Although she will not be able to see me complete them, I am committed to making her proud in everything I do. This scholarship would not only support my education in the Clinical Mental Health Counseling program at Le Moyne College, but it would also allow me to carry her legacy by caring for others the way she cared for my family and everyone she met. My future looks very different without her in it, but am I determined to build a life that she would be proud of, and one that reflects the values she taught me. I hope to spend my life doing work that is meaningful and fulfilling, just as she did. My goal is to become a substance abuse counselor, where I can support individuals through some of their most difficult moments and provide the same care that my mom showed to others in need.