When people find out you’re a “Make A Wish Kid” they usually just assume you got to go on a fun trip or get cool stuff. No one ever asks what happened before the wish. When I was 5 I was diagnosed with a rare lung disease called Bronchial Casting. Being so young I never understood what all the big medical terms meant or the simple fact that I now had to fight for my life. The diseases caused a rubber like substance to grow in my lungs, making breathing close to impossible. I had multiple surgeries to remove the castings but as fast as they took some out more would grow back. This led to years of multiple surgeries and hospitalization for weeks at a time. It’s safe to say my childhood was anything but normal. When I was granted my wish, I didn’t understand that the wish was meant to give me one last big adventure before the disease would take my life. Although as I write this essay and look back at the last 13 years. I beat every odd against me and have been able to accomplish so many things in my life. This disease caused half of one of my lungs to collapse but even through it all, I still continue to live. I’m now 18 years old and graduated high school this May. I’ve accomplished so much in my life living with a disease that was meant to stop me from living. I play football and lacrosse for Central Catholic High School and will be attending Hobart Institute of Welding Technology this October. Welding is something I was told may never been a possibility due to it being hard on the lungs. Though I know since I have survived a disease that sadly steals so many lives too soon, I strive to beat the odds once again. Every day when I wake up I am grateful for every breath I take because this disease comes with an uncertainty of when everything will spike back up. I am proud to say I am A Make a Wish Kid and grateful the foundation provided me with an experience I will never forget. I pray every day for the children and families that must experience childhood illness and those who sadly don’t make it to experience their wishes. I thank God every day that He has allowed me to live through this disease and still experience life. If having this disease has taught me anything it’s to never take anything for granted, especially the ability to breathe and wake up every day to enjoy the life I fought so hard to keep. And for pushing through and never letting this disease get in my way of whatever goal I set in front of me that is my biggest personal accomplishment. I have learned that you can do anything you put your mind too. Living everyday like it could be your last is how I live every day. However, that has made me push harder. Hoping that going to school to be a welder is the next thing I will get to mark off my goal list that I have accomplished. A lot of specialists thought I would never survive to see the age of 6 due to the rarity of my disease. I made it this far thanks to them and my parents for pushing me to keep fighting when I wanted to give up. So, becoming a welder is not only a gift but to tell them all thanks for believing I could when I didn't.

Why I Choose Welding As My Career Path I believe there’s something admirable about choosing a trade instead of the traditional college path. It says something about someone’s character, work ethic, and drive to want more than what books and lectures can provide. I chose welding after years of watching my own father and grandfather teach me what it means to be a blue-collar man. They’ve shown me the value of taking pride in your work and having a strong attention to detail. These days I believe it’s hard to come across people that genuinely take pride in what they do and strive to make a job done well. I want to do my part to break that cycle and become a welder that takes pride in my work and always shows up at 100% to do the very best job I can do. To me, becoming a welder means building a skill that can be used among many trades and real word challenges. It’s having a strong attention to the little things and learning that patience is a strong skill to have. I want to work in this trade to not only have stability for my own future but for my future family. To ensure I can provide a good and stable life for them as my father has always done for me and my family. There’s a strong honor about being able to say you’re a blue-collar man that many won’t understand. Although, I feel that going into this trade is something I have always been called to do. I am confident that one day I will achieve my goal at becoming a well-respected welder. Along with a drive to never stop trying to learn new things within the trade as well as keep the long respectable art of the job at heart. My biggest accomplishment was proving the specialists wrong. At 5 I was diagnosed with a very rare lung disease. That diagnosis was devastating. The doctors made my parents plan my Make a Wish trip and told them to never let me play sports as it could be detrimental to my health and possibly kill me. My parents decided that it was in God's hands and that they wanted me to be a normal little boy. I was already playing t-ball and I loved it. I would have been more devastated over not being able to participate in sports more than I would have living with this disease that could possibly cut my life short. I played numerous sports and finally won the state championship in football. So, my biggest accomplishment was pushing through when all odds were stacked against me. I learned that life is a precious gift and never take a single day for granted. My parents sacrificed a lot to make sure I got the best treatment and seen then best specialists out there. So, getting this scholarship would help me give back to my parents for all they have done for me.

Why I Choose Welding As My Career Path I believe there’s something admirable about choosing a trade instead of the traditional college path. It says something about someone’s character, work ethic, and drive to want more than what books and lectures can provide. I chose welding after years of watching my own father and grandfather teach me what it means to be a blue-collar man. They’ve shown me the value of taking pride in your work and having a strong attention to detail. These days I believe it’s hard to come across people that genuinely take pride in what they do and strive to make a job done well. I want to do my part to break that cycle and become a welder that takes pride in my work and always shows up at 100% to do the very best job I can do. To me, becoming a welder means building a skill that can be used among many trades and real word challenges. It’s having a strong attention to the little things and learning that patience is a strong skill to have. I want to work in this trade to not only have stability for my own future but for my future family. To ensure I can provide a good and stable life for them as my father has always done for me and my family. There’s a strong honor about being able to say you’re a blue-collar man that many won’t understand. Although, I feel that going into this trade is something I have always been called to do. I am confident that one day I will achieve my goal at becoming a well-respected welder. Along with a drive to never stop trying to learn new things within the trade as well as keep the long respectable art of the job at heart. My biggest accomplishment was proving the specialists wrong. At 5 I was diagnosed with a very rare lung disease. That diagnosis was devastating. The doctors made my parents plan my Make a Wish trip and told them to never let me play sports as it could be detrimental to my health and possibly kill me. My parents decided that it was in God's hands and that they wanted me to be a normal little boy. I was already playing t-ball and I loved it. I would have been more devastated over not being able to participate in sports more than I would have living with this disease that could possibly cut my life short. I played numerous sports and finally won the state championship in football. So, my biggest accomplishment was pushing through when all odds were stacked against me. I learned that life is a precious gift and never take a single day for granted. My parents sacrificed a lot to make sure I got the best treatment and seen then best specialists out there. So, getting this scholarship would help me give back to my parents for all they have done for me.

Why I Choose Welding As My Career Path I believe there’s something admirable about choosing a trade instead of the traditional college path. It says something about someone’s character, work ethic, and drive to want more than what books and lectures can provide. I chose welding after years of watching my own father and grandfather teach me what it means to be a blue-collar man. They’ve shown me the value of taking pride in your work and having a strong attention to detail. These days I believe it’s hard to come across people that genuinely take pride in what they do and strive to make a job done well. I want to do my part to break that cycle and become a welder that takes pride in my work and always shows up at 100% to do the very best job I can do. To me, becoming a welder means building a skill that can be used among many trades and real word challenges. It’s having a strong attention to the little things and learning that patience is a strong skill to have. I want to work in this trade to not only have stability for my own future but for my future family. To ensure I can provide a good and stable life for them as my father has always done for me and my family. There’s a strong honor about being able to say you’re a blue-collar man that many won’t understand. Although, I feel that going into this trade is something I have always been called to do. I am confident that one day I will achieve my goal at becoming a well-respected welder. Along with a drive to never stop trying to learn new things within the trade as well as keep the long respectable art of the job at heart. In this day and age everything around us is evolving. Soon AI will take over, and a lot of people will lose their jobs and be replaced by AI. This will take the caring connection out of a lot of things replaced by AI. I feel some elderly people that do not have family that depend on customer service to help them will be devastating if replaced by AI. This may be the only real interaction some people receive with the outside world. So, deciding what I wanted to do after High School was struggle. I knew I wanted to have a career that no computer to take away. I will be able to see a person's real vision of something and hopefully make it a reality. There will always be a need for welders, so that is why I chose that career path.

I have set goals for myself that most kids don't. I was a diagnosed with a rare lung disease at the young age of 5. And after I did my Make a Wish trip my parents said I started setting small goals to accomplish to keep pushing through my disease and not give up. I have been accepted into the Hobart Welding institute. I played football all my life against the Dr's wishes in fear my lung would collapse. However, my parents wanted me to experience being a normal boy like everyone else. So, my junior year I was on the defensive and offensive end. On one particular play the quarterback changed the play and wanted me to do something different. I assumed the coach told him to change the play. Well after we did the play I got screamed at terribly by the assistant coach. The defensive coach was told by the assistant coach to put me on the headset. My parents were sitting right below the press box and could hear what the assistant coach literally was screaming to me over the headset. I listened to what he said and never said a word as to why I played the play that I did. As upset as I was for getting yelled at for something I was told to do by the quarterback I stood there and took the lecture. I could have told the coach that the quarterback told me to play that play, but I did not. It did not cost us the ball or to lose the game thankfully. And after that day the coaches barely played me the rest of the year when I was always a starter. I took the beating by the coach but held true to being a true team player and never blaming what happened on someone else. I was not going to play this year but knew that I could not let what happened the year before hold me back from doing something I loved. I made the best decision ever. I had the most tackles for the season, and we made it to win the state championship. If it was not from the support, I received from my teammates I may not have played again. They gained respect for me by never telling on the quarterback and especially when it caused me to barely play after that.

When people find out you’re a “Make A Wish Kid” they usually just assume you got to go on a fun trip or get cool stuff. No one ever asks what happened before the wish. When I was 5 I was diagnosed with a rare lung disease called Bronchial Casting. Being so young I never understood what all the big medical terms meant or the simple fact that I now had to fight for my life. The diseases caused a rubber like substance to grow in my lungs, making breathing close to impossible. I had multiple surgeries to remove the castings but as fast as they took some out more would grow back. This led to years of multiple surgeries and hospitalization for weeks at a time. It’s safe to say my childhood was anything but normal. When I was granted my wish, I didn’t understand that the wish was meant to give me one last big adventure before the disease would take my life. Although as I write this essay and look back at the last 13 years. I beat every odd against me and have been able to accomplish so many things in my life. This disease caused half of one of my lungs to collapse but even through it all, I still continue to live. I’m now 18 years old and will be graduating high school this may. I’ve accomplished so much in my life living with a disease that was meant to stop me from living. I play football and lacrosse for Central Catholic High School and will be attending Hobart Institute of Welding Technology this October. Welding is something I was told may never been a possibility due to it being hard on the lungs. Though I know since I have survived a disease that sadly steals so many lives too soon, I strive to beat the odds once again. Every day when I wake up I am grateful for every breath I take because this disease comes with an uncertainty of when everything will spike back up. I am proud to say I am A Make a Wish Kid and grateful the foundation provided me with an experience I will never forget. I pray every day for the children and families that must experience childhood illness and those who sadly don’t make it to experience their wishes. I thank God every day that He has allowed me to live through this disease and still experience life. If having this disease has taught me anything it’s to never take anything for granted, especially the ability to breathe and wake up every day to enjoy the life I fought so hard to keep. And for pushing through and never letting this disease get in my way of whatever goal I set in front of me that is my biggest personal accomplishment. I have learned that you can do anything you put your mind too. Living everyday like it could be your last is how I live every day. However, that has made me push harder. Hoping that going to school to be a welder is the next thing I will get to mark off my goal list that I have accomplished.

I am proud to not only be from WV but to grove up in the tight knit community that I did. At the age of 5 I was diagnosed with a rare lung disease. Along with that came piles of medical bills. The community we live in rallied together and threw multiple fund raisers to help my parents pay all my medical bills. At the time my mom was a training coordinator at a Coal Mine. The coal mine community stepped up and raised money for my mom to not only pay my medical bills but to provide her with money while she spent countless days and nights with me in the hospital. A lot of people don't get to experience the love and kindness West Virginia people show to each other. We as West Virginians often geta bad name from being in the Appalachian Mountains. Little do they know that everyone in this state takes care of each other. It has taught me the true value of kindness. With everything I have experienced and the love I receive has made me want to stay in this beautiful state and one day raise my family here. I have traveled to other states and have never been greeted with the same friendliness as I always have from West Virginia. I come from a city that is nicknamed "The Friendly City". That could not be truer. I have gone to other states over the years for treatment and people just look straight ahead and never acknowledge you. People in West Virginia always make eye contact and either smile or say Hi. I always found comfort in this. Life is already hard and a little smile or how are you can make a person's day much better. We get so caught up in the everyday hustle and you never know what a person is going through. A simple act like smiling at a person or asking how their day is going is something you will always experience in West Virginia. I am not only a proud West Viginia resident, but I am also a proud Coal Miners son. And West Virginia supplies so much coal to other parts of the world and that is also something to be proud of for living in the Wild and Wonderful state of West Virginia. Other states need to take a good look at West Virginia and try to be more like us.

When I was five years old, I was diagnosed with a rare lung disease. The doctors had never seen my disease before. There were only 2 other kids that they could find with what I had. They told my parents to start planning my Make a Wish trip. The future was very uncertain for me. I spent my childhood in and out of hospitals getting multiple surgeries. Experiencing this has taught me how precious life is and to most importantly live like it is your last day. None of us ever know what each day brings. I decided to start making a difference where I could. For many years I have helped feed the homeless. My friend started an organization called Noah's Pantry. we would collect canned goods and non-perishables to hand out. We would make Thanksgiving and Christmas food baskets for the less fortunate as well. I know help with preparing hot meals on Sundays to drop off at the "life hub" where the homeless stay. I look at life as a gift and you never know when you could end up on the other side hoping for the same kindness and understanding as I try to show to others. This is why i decided to try to make a good future for myself and go to a trade school to become a welder. Hoping this will be a good career to provide for myself and others when I am able. I believe there’s something admirable about choosing a trade instead of the traditional college path. It says something about someone’s character, work ethic, and drive to want more than what books and lectures can provide. I chose welding after years of watching my own father and grandfather teach me what it means to be a blue-collar man. They’ve shown me the value of taking pride in your work and having a strong attention to detail. These days I believe it’s hard to come across people that genuinely take pride in what they do and strive to make a job done well. I want to do my part to break that cycle and become a welder that takes pride in my work and always shows up at 100% to do the very best job I can do. To me, becoming a welder means building a skill that can be used among many trades and real word challenges. It’s having a strong attention to the little things and learning that patience is a strong skill to have. I want to work in this trade to not only have stability for my own future but for my future family. To ensure I can provide a good and stable life for them as my father has always done for me and my family. There’s a strong honor about being able to say you’re a blue-collar man that many won’t understand. Although, I feel that going into this trade is something I have always been called to do. I am confident that one day I will achieve my goal at becoming a well-respected welder. Along with a drive to never stop trying to learn new things within the trade as well as keep the long respectable art of the job at heart.

I am a very goal driven person. I was diagnosed with a very rare lung disease at the age of 6. Doctors told my parents to take me on my Make a Wish trip and never let me play sports or do what boys like to do. Even at that age it lit a fire under me that I was going to keep setting goals and mark them off my list as I reached them. The best goal ever is going to be to graduate in May and then purse my goal of being a welder at the Hobart Welding Institute. Never say dreams and goals are untouchable even when others say you won't live long enough to see them become a reality. I believe there’s something admirable about choosing a trade instead of the traditional college path. It says something about someone’s character, work ethic, and drive to want more than what books and lectures can provide. I chose welding after years of watching my own father and grandfather teach me what it means to be a blue-collar man. They’ve shown me the value of taking pride in your work and having a strong attention to detail. These days I believe it’s hard to come across people that genuinely take pride in what they do and strive to make a job done well. I want to do my part to break that cycle and become a welder that takes pride in my work and always shows up at 100% to do the very best job I can do. To me, becoming a welder means building a skill that can be used among many trades and real word challenges. It’s having a strong attention to the little things and learning that patience is a strong skill to have. I want to work in this trade to not only have stability for my own future but for my future family. To ensure I can provide a good and stable life for them as my father has always done for me and my family. There’s a strong honor about being able to say you’re a blue-collar man that many won’t understand. Although, I feel that going into this trade is something I have always been called to do. I am confident that one day I will achieve my goal at becoming a well-respected welder. Along with a drive to never stop trying to learn new things within the trade as well as keep the long respectable art of the job at heart.

I was diagnosed with a very rare lung disease at the age of six. My parents and I never thought I would live to make it out of grade school and especially not high school. After we did my Make a Wish trip my parents went against all the Dr's and specialists advise to never let me play sports and do all the boy things. They told us if my lung collapsed while doing these things I could die. And I proved to everyone that I was going to never give up fighting and would never let this disease hold me back. I want to become a blue-collar worker like my dad and keep reaching for that next goal that they said was going to be impossible to reach. I believe there’s something admirable about choosing a trade instead of the traditional college path. It says something about someone’s character, work ethic, and drive to want more than what books and lectures can provide. I chose welding after years of watching my own father and grandfather teach me what it means to be a blue-collar man. They’ve shown me the value of taking pride in your work and having a strong attention to detail. These days I believe it’s hard to come across people that genuinely take pride in what they do and strive to make a job done well. I want to do my part to break that cycle and become a welder that takes pride in my work and always shows up at 100% to do the very best job I can do. To me, becoming a welder means building a skill that can be used among many trades and real word challenges. It’s having a strong attention to the little things and learning that patience is a strong skill to have. I want to work in this trade to not only have stability for my own future but for my future family. To ensure I can provide a good and stable life for them as my father has always done for me and my family. There’s a strong honor about being able to say you’re a blue-collar man that many won’t understand. Although, I feel that going into this trade is something I have always been called to do. I am confident that one day I will achieve my goal at becoming a well-respected welder. Along with a drive to never stop trying to learn new things within the trade as well as keep the long respectable art of the job at heart.

I was diagnosed with a very rare lung disease at the age of six years old. And with that I was not sure if I would ever make it to middle school let alone high school. And here I am now looking to go to a trade school to purse my dream as a welder and prove to the Dr's that I am a waking miracle and that I will keep striving to reach my next goal that I have set out for myself. I am a Make a Wish recipient and there are not many kids that get to experience meeting other kids that have life threating illness. And by me going through that it has made me not take one single day for granted. Watching my parents take care of me and all the bills that came along with my sickness had made me want to strive to be just like them. I believe there’s something admirable about choosing a trade instead of the traditional college path. It says something about someone’s character, work ethic, and drive to want more than what books and lectures can provide. I chose welding after years of watching my own father and grandfather teach me what it means to be a blue-collar man. They’ve shown me the value of taking pride in your work and having a strong attention to detail. These days I believe it’s hard to come across people that genuinely take pride in what they do and strive to make a job done well. I want to do my part to break that cycle and become a welder that takes pride in my work and always shows up at 100% to do the very best job I can do. To me, becoming a welder means building a skill that can be used among many trades and real word challenges. It’s having a strong attention to the little things and learning that patience is a strong skill to have. I want to work in this trade to not only have stability for my own future but for my future family. To ensure I can provide a good and stable life for them as my father has always done for me and my family. There’s a strong honor about being able to say you’re a blue-collar man that many won’t understand. Although, I feel that going into this trade is something I have always been called to do. I am confident that one day I will achieve my goal at becoming a well-respected welder. Along with a drive to never stop trying to learn new things within the trade as well as keep the long respectable art of the job at heart.

I was diagnosed with a rare lung disease when I was 6 years old. All the specialists and Doctors I seen growing up told me and my parents to never let me play sports. They feared that my lung would collapse or worse. After my Make a Wish trip my parents decided that they would let me be a normal boy that did not have to sit on the sidelines and watch others play. It was a hard decision for them, but I thank them every day for making that choice. My childhood was spent in and out of the hospital for most of my life. They felt that by holding me back from things would only destroy me but make me give up fighting in fear that I would feel I had nothing to look forward to. I am a Catholic that has always went to a Catholic school. And my relationship with God has been the one thing that has always stood out to me. I knew that my health was in Gods hands and that he was in charge. I feel that is why he has brough me as far as he has. And becoming a welder would be a dream come true to me and to show others that just because you don't have visible disability that, that does not mean you don't have one and to keep pursing your dreams. And for mine is to become a welder. I believe there’s something admirable about choosing a trade instead of the traditional college path. It says something about someone’s character, work ethic, and drive to want more than what books and lectures can provide. I chose welding after years of watching my own father and grandfather teach me what it means to be a blue-collar man. They’ve shown me the value of taking pride in your work and having a strong attention to detail. These days I believe it’s hard to come across people that genuinely take pride in what they do and strive to make a job done well. I want to do my part to break that cycle and become a welder that takes pride in my work and always shows up at 100% to do the very best job I can do. To me, becoming a welder means building a skill that can be used among many trades and real word challenges. It’s having a strong attention to the little things and learning that patience is a strong skill to have. I want to work in this trade to not only have stability for my own future but for my future family. To ensure I can provide a good and stable life for them as my father has always done for me and my family. There’s a strong honor about being able to say you’re a blue-collar man that many won’t understand. Although, I feel that going into this trade is something I have always been called to do. I am confident that one day I will achieve my goal at becoming a well-respected welder. Along with a drive to never stop trying to learn new things within the trade as well as keep the long respectable art of the job at heart.

I am a senior in High School which was something my parents and I thought would never be a possibility. I was diagnosed with a lung disease at the young age of 6. Doctors told my parents to start planning a Make a Wish trip for me because they did not know how long I would be here. Not only have I proved the Dr's wrong, but I am here to purse my dream of going to a trade school to become a welder. Here is why I was led to go to a trade school and not get a normal 4-year degree. I believe there’s something admirable about choosing a trade instead of the traditional college path. It says something about someone’s character, work ethic, and drive to want more than what books and lectures can provide. I chose welding after years of watching my own father and grandfather teach me what it means to be a blue-collar man. They’ve shown me the value of taking pride in your work and having a strong attention to detail. These days I believe it’s hard to come across people that genuinely take pride in what they do and strive to make a job done well. I want to do my part to break that cycle and become a welder that takes pride in my work and always shows up at 100% to do the very best job I can do. To me, becoming a welder means building a skill that can be used among many trades and real word challenges. It’s having a strong attention to the little things and learning that patience is a strong skill to have. I want to work in this trade to not only have stability for my own future but for my future family. To ensure I can provide a good and stable life for them as my father has always done for me and my family. There’s a strong honor about being able to say you’re a blue-collar man that many won’t understand. Although, I feel that going into this trade is something I have always been called to do. I am confident that one day I will achieve my goal at becoming a well-respected welder. Along with a drive to never stop trying to learn new things within the trade as well as keep the long respectable art of the job at heart.

I have grown up in a Catholic family and was always raised by the word of God. I then was sent to a private school from K-12. It has made my faith and love for God grow even stronger. I was diagnosed with a lung disease at the age of 6. My parents trusted in God and let me continue to be a boy and play sports against the Doctors wishes. I am a Make a Wish recipient and thank God daily for letting me wake up each morning and still prove to myself and others that God makes miracles happen and that I am living proof of that. My Faith and Love for God has gotten me where I am today. I want to be a testament to others that never question God and always let him walk beside you. And by doing that I am where I am today. Going into a trade school to become a welder has always been a dream of mine and here is why. I believe there’s something admirable about choosing a trade instead of the traditional college path. It says something about someone’s character, work ethic, and drive to want more than what books and lectures can provide. I chose welding after years of watching my own father and grandfather teach me what it means to be a blue collar man. They’ve shown me the value of taking pride in your work and having a strong attention to detail. These days I believe it’s hard to come across people that genuinely take pride in what they do and strive to make a job done well. I want to do my part to break that cycle and become a welder that takes pride in my work and always shows up at 100% to do the very best job I can do. To me, becoming a welder means building a skill that can be used among many trades and real word challenges. It’s having a strong attention to the little things and learning that patience is a strong skill to have. I want to work in this trade to not only have stability for my own future but for my future family. To ensure I can provide a good and stable life for them as my father has always done for me and my family. There’s a strong honor about being able to say you’re a blue collar man that many won’t understand. Although, I feel that going into this trade is something I have always been called to do. I am confident that one day I will achieve my goal at becoming a well respected welder. Along with a drive to never stop trying to learn new things within the trade as well as keep the long respectable art of the job at heart.

I believe there’s something admirable about choosing a trade instead of the traditional college path. It says something about someone’s character, work ethic, and drive to want more than what books and lectures can provide. I chose welding after years of watching my own father and grandfather teach me what it means to be a blue collar man. They’ve shown me the value of taking pride in your work and having a strong attention to detail. These days I believe it’s hard to come across people that genuinely take pride in what they do and strive to make a job done well. I want to do my part to break that cycle and become a welder that takes pride in my work and always shows up at 100% to do the very best job I can do. To me, becoming a welder means building a skill that can be used among many trades and real word challenges. It’s having a strong attention to the little things and learning that patience is a strong skill to have. I want to work in this trade to not only have stability for my own future but for my future family. To ensure I can provide a good and stable life for them as my father has always done for me and my family. There’s a strong honor about being able to say you’re a blue collar man that many won’t understand. Although, I feel that going into this trade is something I have always been called to do. I am confident that one day I will achieve my goal at becoming a well respected welder. Along with a drive to never stop trying to learn new things within the trade as well as keep the long respectable art of the job at heart. My Parents have had to pay for years of medical bills for my lung disease, and I would like to take trade school off of them buy helping lighten the burden by receiving scholarships.