For a long time, mental health was a hush hush topic in my family. Mental health problems were nonexistent if you had a roof over your head, food on the table, and a family. In my family I have two brothers, which makes me the middle child and only daughter. For most of my life, my brothers were what some people refer to as “the problem child”, they would get bad grades, get in fights, and they were both diagnosed with ADHD. My parents' focus was always on them, which made me feel left out. I was the child that was “so mature” and “could handle herself”. I later found out that the term used for kids like me was the glass child. That’s exactly what I was, a piece of glass in my family. I would get straight A’s all year long, get perfect attendance, win an award and yet I was looked right through. I had already done all that the year before, so it was no longer anything special but once my brothers got an A it was a big deal! I began valuing my life with a tiny letter on a piece of paper. From a young age, I was groomed to believe that if I got all A’s then it determined my worth. School became a part of me, and that tiny little A determined whether or not I would be successful in life. Every year, without fail I would push myself to get straight A’s and every year stress clouded my fun. I had to take the hardest classes, I had to be at the top of my class, I needed to because who would I be without it. There was once a specific class that I struggled in, and despite going to tutoring every single day after school I received a B on my report card. I know it might sound so stupid, because it was just a B. But to me it was the end of my life, I tried so hard and yet I felt like I failed. I spiraled, and for weeks all I could do was lay in bed and think about how I had disappointed my parents. I cried with a stuffed animal, named Peanut Butter, and told him about my failure. Finally, the glass began to crack and I could no longer keep it together and I knew something needed to change before I spiraled further. I worked up the courage to ask my mother if I can see a therapist, and talk through these feelings. To some this might seem like an easy task, but asking for help is one of the hardest battles to face when you are already struggling. Once I started seeing a therapist, I worked through these feelings of guilt, anger, and resentment. To this day, I still struggle with comparing my worth to my grades but I know it does not define me. Mental health is certainly not talked about enough, and even in a picture perfect family there are walls that people don’t see. Despite mental health being hushed in my family for a very long time, my parents began opening up to the idea. My parents are now one of the most supportive people when it comes to mental health, but even they couldn’t understand what my youngest brother was going through. Earlier this year, my little brother had attempted suicide and luckily he survived and was able to receive the help he needed. When I saw him in the hospital, I gave him a hug and cried because all I could wonder was “why”. Why didn’t he want to talk to me? Why did he want to do this? Would he have said goodbye? Would he have talked to me if I was home? Thousands of questions, and all of them unanswered. At the end of the day, I was just glad he was ok. I remembered back to when I was struggling and I didn’t want anybody to see, and I soon understood how he might be feeling. All I could do was support him from the sidelines, and give him the time to heal. This entire experience opened my eyes to the world and how I could leave a positive impact on the world. I decided that being open minded and kind can mean so much to one person. Open the door for the person behind you, give a small smile to the old lady sitting on the bench, compliment someone's outfit. You never know what is happening behind closed doors, even if they are in your own house. Kindness and courtesy go a long way, and one word could save someone's life.

Integrity is a highly valued trait that is important to many people. To me, integrity means being honest and truthful and living up to my values and principles. It means being consistent in my actions and words, and being fair and respectful in my dealings with others. To me, integrity is a personal quality that reflects my character and is a key part of who I am as a person, a friend, a sister, and a daughter. It is a trait that is highly prized and admired, and it is something that many people strive to embody in their own lives. Although integrity and honor are underappreciated, I believe that they are the foundations for being a good person. I achieve integrity and honor by being brave in the face of adversity, fighting for what I believe, and being consistent. I firmly believe that fighting for what you believe in is an honor in itself. For many years, women never even had the right to vote, so I advocate for women’s rights through student council. Student council gives me a platform to advocate for students that are too afraid to speak up. I use my platform to put together events that teach about suicide awareness, anti-bullying, and leadership opportunities in Las Vegas. At my school, I am a part of the Student Organizational Team (SOT) that helps students get a voice. Every month, I speak with our principal about our school needs like lunches and school supplies. In addition to this, I stay committed to projects that I work on. For the last year, I have been building a portfolio that I will submit to the National Student Council Organization (NatStuCo) so that my school can win a prestigious award. I show integrity by not doing any of this for myself, but rather to make my school a more safe and enjoyable place for students.

During the peak of COVID, my mom was rushed into an emergency kidney surgery in Tucson, Arizona. My father accompanied her, and that left my little brother and I home alone. When I first found out, I felt numb. I just sat like a shell of myself doing my makeup, attempting to cover up any emotions with some concealer and foundation. I was a puppet, and the puppeteer was grief. Which was weird, because my mom wasn’t dead, so why was he here? I was terrified, but I kept telling myself that I shouldn’t be the one that is scared. I had no right to be scared when my mom was the one having surgery. Overtime people from my community came together and helped support my little brother and I. Our neighbors and our parents' coworkers would send us meals and gift cards to get food. I didn’t realize it at the time, but kind people across Las Vegas came together to support my parents through my brother and I. They didn’t have to cook us a warm meal, they didn’t have to send cards, they didn’t have to drive me to soccer practice at 6am, but they did. I never really asked for help, it was just there. It was heartwarming to see strangers drop off cookies at my doorstep, or my neighbors coming over to just hang out with us. Ever since this happened, it has inspired me to serve my community and be a more productive member of society. I am a consistent student council member, and every day I work to make sure we are making a positive difference in our community. I strongly believe that serving your community and volunteering your time to those in need is one of the best things someone can do. Community is a huge part of leadership, so to show my student council the importance of this, I executed a food drive that raised over 100 lb of canned food and provided volunteer opportunities that allowed council members to improve our community. This year, I put together an event that raised over 300 dollars that went to an organization called “The Shade Tree”. This organization provides shelter and care for domestic violence victims. This was an incredible opportunity, and I am forever blessed that I was able to put it together. Along with this, I participated in a PB&J Athon three years in a row which provided food for homeless people in Las Vegas. Service is extremely important to me, and I think building a strong community helps individuals grow.

As an active member of my community, I believe that service is important to the foundation of a productive country. I am a dedicated member of student council, and have been for the last 9 years. Every day, I work to make not only my student council stronger but my state better. This year, I was elected to sit on the Nevada Association of Student Councils (NASC) State Board, which made me the first person ever from my school to hold that position. I use my position on the NASC state board to share knowledge and make a genuine change in the entire state. I have helped improve student council communication on the state level through Instagram, emails, Zoom meetings, leadership lessons to schools in Nevada, and the planning of local/statewide events. In ordinance with student council, I have influenced members in my own council to apply to be Distinguished Student Leaders, an award given by the National Student Council Association (NatStuCo) and some of them have taken the steps to do this. I have guided them through this process day by day, as I was awarded this. While I sit on the NASC State Board I am an active member on the Student Organizational Team (SOT) and my school's Student Body Historian. On the SOT I directly communicate with my principal about my school's needs that directly affect students like proper lunch foods and resources for students outside of school hours. Community is a huge part of leadership, so to show my council the importance of this, I executed a food drive that raised over 100 lb of canned food and provided volunteer opportunities that allowed council members to improve our community. In addition, I put together an event that raised over 300 dollars that went to an organization called “The Shade Tree”. This organization provides shelter and care for domestic violence victims. This was an incredible opportunity, and I am forever blessed that I was able to put it together. Along with this, I participated in a PB&J Athon three years in a row which provided food for homeless people in Las Vegas. Service is extremely important to me, and I think building a strong community helps individuals grow. Volunteering for my community is what helps me connect to individuals that are not so lucky. Even after I graduate high school, I will strive to create a positive climate when I attend a university. Through leadership and service, I have learned that there is always room for improvement, and however long it takes I will improve my state and contribute to a more positive country. I plan on advocating for minorities and women’s rights through leadership and networking to make a change. When I move to Reno, Nevada in August I will continue to make a positive difference wherever I go, because that is just simply how our world will thrive.

There are many types of grief in the world, but nonetheless grief is grief. It is difficult and relentless. It knocks you while you are down, and pushes your head just below the surface of water. Grief tricks you, makes you believe you are healing but really grief only lets you above the water for a second before pushing you back under. During the peak of COVID, my mom was rushed into an emergency kidney surgery in Tucson, Arizona. My father accompanied her, and that left my little brother and I home alone. When I first found out, I felt numb. I just sat like a shell of myself doing my makeup, attempting to cover up any emotions with some concealer and foundation. I was a puppet, and the puppeteer was grief. Which was weird, because my mom wasn’t dead, so why was he here? I was terrified, but I kept telling myself that I shouldn’t be the one that is scared. I had no right to be scared when my mom was the one having surgery. I just felt guilty, guilty for being scared, guilty for feeling alone, guilty for depending on my neighbors. At this point, I was barely talking to my parents and each day was just waiting for a phone call. I was in a tunnel, and there was no light at the end. It was just my little brother and I navigating a world without our parents. I had to be the strong older sister, I had to pave a path for my brother to follow. I tried my best to hold that strong front, but strength only goes so far. I learned that it is okay to be vulnerable, it is okay to depend on others. I wouldn’t have made it out of grief’s grasp if it wasn’t for my community and the people that love me. I was in a vulnerable state, at the verge of breaking and instead of drowning I was being lifted up. People from my community came together and helped support my little brother and I. Our neighbors and our parents' coworkers would send us meals and gift cards to get food. I didn’t realize it at the time, but kind people across Las Vegas came together to support my parents through my brother and I. They didn’t have to cook us a warm meal, they didn’t have to send cards, they didn’t have to drive me to soccer practice at 6am, but they did. I never really asked for help, it was just there. It was heartwarming to see strangers drop off cookies at my doorstep, or my neighbors coming over to just hang out with us. Grief’s puppet strings were being cut one by one, and the tunnel was looking brighter. There were still challenges that I had to overcome, hills I needed to climb but I wasn’t alone. I learned that I would never be alone, the kindness of those around me allowed me to see this. It was an unspoken kindness, one that didn’t need a thank you. People wanted to help, they wanted to support us in any way that they could. Even though grief was still brewing around the corner, it was overshadowed by the strength and kindness of my community.