My father has type 1 diabetes, so I have grown up watching him struggle to maintain his health while having a normal life. When I was younger, we did all sorts of things. He would take me out to eat regularly, or we would just hang out all day at the park, making wonderful memories. As he has grown older, however, he has started having low-glucose seizures. I will never forget the first time I saw one. My mom had already gone through several by herself, and the day that I had to deal with one was a day that I have tried to block out. He was sitting at the kitchen table, and I had gotten him juice while having my mom, who was working, talk me through how to do a finger stick. It read 60, and panic set in. She told me where his gyvoke pen was, and I was trying to give it to him when he fell out of the chair and began seizing. I called my mom back screaming for her to please come home, that he was dying in front of me, and even though she said she was only 5 minutes from the house, I just knew he wouldn't make it. I turned cold, and I'm pretty sure I stopped breathing. It felt like forever before my mom came through the door and took over, promptly getting him on his side and calling 911. My feeling of helplessness quickly turned to blame; if I had gotten the shot quicker, this whole thing might have been avoided. The ambulance came, and I ran to my room, scared of what they were going to say. I hid under the covers while they worked on him, my hands over my ears because I didn't want to hear them say he was gone. Thankfully, everything was ok this time. Unfortunately, this is an ongoing problem. The drs have finally diagnosed him as being a brittle diabetic, so it isn't that his sugar drops but that it's dropping too fast. They also introduced us to a nasal spray, which my mom affectionately calls his diabetic narcan. Honestly, it only works 50% of the time, so there is always a collective fear whenever his sugar starts dropping. Because of this, I was never the kid who went away for the summer or stayed at his friends every weekend. I tend to stick close to my house because I never know when he might need me. I even thought about being homeschooled for a while so he would always have someone there, but realistically, I knew that wasn't going to work. Leaving for college terrifies me. I know that in order to get the best degree possible for my chosen vocation I need to move almost 5 hours away, but a large part of me wants to stay local so I can be here if he needs me. He is adamant that he will be fine, but still, it's very unsettling for me. My long term goal is to make enough money so that I can move him out of West Virginia and get him to a better Dr who can maybe do more for him than what the local clinics in our town can. I want my dad around to see his grandchildren and to know the man who raised me. I feel like I owe it to him to do my best because he has always done his best for me.

Welding is, according to scienceabc.com, "the process of joining two materials, also referred to as substrates, by fusing them using heat energy concentrated along the seams," but to me, it is so much more. There is an indescribable feeling that comes from being able to join two pieces of metal together with fire. If you also factor in that under certain circumstances, you can utilize it underwater or in the vacuum of space, it's mind-blowing. Welding is not only an art, it's a profession that demands respect. Welding is also the conduit for me to rise above the very low expectations that come from living in rural West Virginia. When you are raised in a small town, there isn't much to look forward to after high school. Fast food, gas stations, and Wal-Mart are pretty much the extent of employment opportunities unless, of course, you make the decision to go underground in the mines or follow the pipeline. I have always known that I wanted to learn at least one trade and that traditional college wasn't in my cards, and when I found welding during my freshman year of high school, everything clicked. I remember how nervous I was when I had the interview with the welding instructor; it was, after all, the most popular of all the votech classes, and I will never forget the pride and excitement that came when he shook my hand and accepted me into the class. To say that I was exhilarated the first time I welded is an understatement. I feel that, if I ever had a calling in this life, this is it. I have set for myself a very reasonable and realistically attainable goal: get my 6g and AWS certificates and become the best version of myself in this ever-growing, vocation. To achieve this goal, I have already made peace with the fact I will have to leave my home state. I will be receiving further training at Ohio Technical College in Cleveland; a highly-rated vocational college that offers real training for the real world. I know that going to this school will offer me so much more than my local community college. I don't want to be a coupon welder working in a backwoods shop; I want to blaze a path in this remarkable industry, and by completing the program for welding and fabrication at Ohio Tech, I will be setting myself up for a future that, if I play my cards right, involves owning a fishing charter and being able to take care of my disabled brother once my parents are no longer able to. This world is rapidly changing, and while computers seem to dominate the market, there will always be an inherent need for vocational skills. Welding has been a critical industrial process for centuries, dating back as far as the Bronze Age, and as technology advances, so does welding, offering more precise and efficient techniques. Sustainability and green practices are also gaining ground, making it crucial for these techniques to evolve. The future of welding promises to be cutting-edge, and I will be a part of it no matter what it takes.

Welding is, according to scienceabc.com, "the process of joining two materials, also referred to as substrates, by fusing them using heat energy concentrated along the seams," but to me, it is so much more. There is an indescribable feeling that comes from being able to join two pieces of metal together with fire. If you also factor in that under certain circumstances, you can utilize it underwater or in the vacuum of space, it's mind-blowing. Welding is not only an art, it's a profession that demands respect. Welding is also the conduit for me to rise above the very low expectations that come from living in rural West Virginia. When you are raised in a small town, there isn't much to look forward to after high school. Fast food, gas stations, and Wal-Mart are pretty much the extent of employment opportunities unless, of course, you make the decision to go underground in the mines or follow the pipeline. I have always known that I wanted to learn at least one trade and that traditional college wasn't in my cards, and when I found welding during my freshman year of high school, everything clicked. I remember how nervous I was when I had the interview with the welding instructor; it was, after all, the most popular of all the votech classes, and I will never forget the pride and excitement that came when he shook my hand and accepted me into the class. To say that I was exhilarated the first time I welded is an understatement. I feel that, if I ever had a calling in this life, this is it. I have set for myself a very reasonable and realistically attainable goal: get my 6g and AWS certificates and become the best version of myself in this ever-growing, vocation. To achieve this goal, I have already made peace with the fact I will have to leave my home state. I will be receiving further training at Ohio Technical College in Cleveland; a highly-rated vocational college that offers real training for the real world. I know that going to this school will offer me so much more than my local community college. I don't want to be a coupon welder working in a backwoods shop; I want to blaze a path in this remarkable industry, and by completing the program for welding and fabrication at Ohio Tech, I will be setting myself up for the future. Winning this scholarship would help with covering the cost of the tuition as well as help alleviate some of the financial burdens that my parents have agreed to take on for me to recognize my dream. This world is rapidly changing, and while computers seem to dominate the market, there will always be an inherent need for vocational skills. Welding has been a critical industrial process for centuries, dating back as far as the Bronze Age, and as technology advances, so does welding, offering more precise and efficient techniques. Sustainability and green practices are also gaining ground, making it crucial for these techniques to evolve. The future of welding promises to be cutting-edge, and I will do whatever it takes to be a part of it!

Welding is, according to scienceabc.com, "the process of joining two materials, also referred to as substrates, by fusing them using heat energy concentrated along the seams," but to me, it is so much more. There is an indescribable feeling that comes from being able to join two pieces of metal together with fire. If you also factor in that under certain circumstances, you can utilize it underwater or in the vacuum of space, it's mind-blowing. Welding is not only an art, it's a profession that demands respect. Welding is also the conduit for me to rise above the very low expectations that come from living in rural West Virginia. When you are raised in a small town, there isn't much to look forward to after high school. Fast food, gas stations, and Wal-Mart are pretty much the extent of employment opportunities unless, of course, you make the decision to go underground in the mines or follow the pipeline. I have always known that I wanted to learn at least one trade and that traditional college wasn't in my cards, and when I found welding during my freshman year of high school, everything clicked. I remember how nervous I was when I had the interview with the welding instructor; it was, after all, the most popular of all the votech classes, and I will never forget the pride and excitement that came when he shook my hand and accepted me into the class. To say that I was exhilarated the first time I welded is an understatement. I feel that, if I ever had a calling in this life, this is it. I have set for myself a very reasonable and realistically attainable goal: get my 6g and AWS certificates and become the best version of myself in this ever-growing, vocation. To achieve this goal, I have already made peace with the fact I will have to leave my home state. I will be receiving further training at Ohio Technical College in Cleveland; a highly-rated vocational college that offers real training for the real world. I know that going to this school will offer me so much more than my local community college. I don't want to be a coupon welder working in a backwoods shop; I want to blaze a path in this remarkable industry, and by completing the program for welding and fabrication at Ohio Tech, I will be setting myself up for the future. Winning this scholarship would help with covering the cost of the tuition as well as help alleviate some of the financial burdens that my parents have agreed to take on for me to recognize my dream. This world is rapidly changing, and while computers seem to dominate the market, there will always be an inherent need for vocational skills. Welding has been a critical industrial process for centuries, dating back as far as the Bronze Age, and as technology advances, so does welding, offering more precise and efficient techniques. Sustainability and green practices are also gaining ground, making it crucial for these techniques to evolve. The future of welding promises to be cutting-edge, and I do whatever it takes to be a part of it!

"Montani Semper Liberi!” If you ask me what it means to grow up in West Virginia, I will tell you that on the surface, it means cool springs, hot summers, crisp falls, and cold dark winters. But if you ask me on a deeper level, I would tell you it means waiting for the first frost-free nights so I can go camping. It means spending my summer either at Summersville Lake swimming with my friends, or walking the bank of Elk River fishing for golden trout and bass, pretending I am Jeremy Wade yelling “fish on” anytime I get a bite. It's kicking my shoes off and running barefoot and wild through an uncut field, getting covered in poison ivy and bee stings; promising my mom I'll never do it again, while knowing I'm going to do it again the very next day. It means waiting for the leaves to turn and the first frost to fall so I can go deer hunting, a long-standing tradition in Appalachia. And finally, it means watching the snow blanket the barren hills, hoping for a snow day so I can relax at home instead of traipsing the halls of school. It means bonfires and hometown parades, grabbing a quick bite at the local diner, or a coffee at the little cafe on the corner. It's listening to a summer storm roll across the hills, and then that earthly smell of wet dirt, a herald to the downpour that is on the way. I can not do justice to the elegance of my home, which is steeped in tradition and heritage. I could tie a hook on a line before I could spell my own name; I could climb a tree before I could tie my own shoes. There are, however, two sides to every coin. Growing up in a small town in the heart of West Virginia has shown me that life isn't always fair. Most of my friends come from broken homes, destroyed by drugs or apathy. The job market isn't the greatest. With the coal industry rapidly decreasing, employment in a small town is pretty limited: gas stations, fast food, and Walmart. It doesn't leave much for high school kids to hope for. We don't have the same opportunities as the “city” kids have, and more and more graduates are choosing to leave the state to better themselves. I will most likely follow suit. That being said, I may leave my home, but I will take with me a plethora of lessons learned from living among the hills and hollers. The mountains have taught me how to build a solid foundation, how to persevere and weather any storm; to dig down deep, and hold onto the ideals I believe in. The rivers and lakes have taught me to just hold my breath and jump in; that a few strokes in any direction will take me back to solid ground. The forests have taught me that there is no obstacle too big, that I simply have to grow around it. I will take all of these lessons and all the yesterdays that I have spent in this wild Appalachia, and I will move forward into the future because, after all, Mountaineers Are Always Free!

I have set out to break a considerable generational curse. I will be the first person in my family to go past high school. I come from a very small town in the middle of West Virginia, where fast food, coal mines, gas stations, and Wal-Mart are basically the extent of employment opportunities. I am meant for something more than "flipping burgers" and "hanging on the local strip." I want to come back to my 20-year high-school reunion and be proud of the fact I made it out and made a life for myself.  I have a special needs younger brother who I have already decided I will assume care of after my parents are no longer able to, and I have to be able to provide us with the life we both deserve. I want better for my future children, and I am aware it starts with me. It is because of these reasons that I know that in order to achieve my goal, I MUST leave the mountains and rivers I have grown up with and love dearly.   I have been aware since kindergarten that a traditional college education is not the route for me. I fell into welding during my freshman year of high school, and it just clicked. This is what I want to do! This is how I make a life for myself! I understand that this world is evolving and expanding, and it is my belief that I can and will be a contributing factor in that.  Thanks to this revelation  I have adapted a straightforward goal: get my 6g and AWS certificates to elevate myself in the ever growing labor market. I also have a clear plan as to how I will achieve my desired outcome. Ohio Tech is the conduit that will allow me to achieve this objective. Ohio Tech's all-inclusive welding program, with its focus on hands-on training and industry-relevant skills, go hand in hand perfectly with the ambitions I have set. I see Ohio Tech as the cornerstone of knowledge that i need to excel in the welding industry. The guidance and support offered by the instructors are essential to my growth, both as a student and as a future professional. Attending Ohio Tech  will not only equip me with the technical skills necessary for success but will also provide a solid foundation for a satisfying and durable career in welding. I also hope that by achieving this dream, I can show my future children that with determination, they can do anything they set their mind to. As I said in my opener, I am out to break this generational curse. It ends with me!