I remember the first time I saw Mattawan’s high school choirs perform. I was sitting on the edge of my seat in Mrs. Townsend’s rainbow-colored classroom, grinning from ear to ear. I sat in awe and watched intently as the students sang. Their faces lit up the already brightly colored choir room. I was starstruck when they started singing a capella, something I had only seen in the Pitch Perfect movies. They created something that I had never witnessed before. At that moment, I made it my mission to be in those choirs. Music has always been a big part of my life. Some of my fondest memories are of my dad and I sitting in the living room and listening to music for hours. In my Freshman year of high school, I participated in choir online. But for the first time in my life, singing was hard. I couldn't hit the high notes I always had, and my voice started hurting. It turned out I had Vocal Chord Dysfunction. I had to go to speech therapy and I was given exercises to use several times each day. So, every day before choir, I would sit on my bed with my camera on, blowing bubbles into a water bottle. My teacher, amused, took note of this and suggested I take private voice lessons with him. I jumped at the opportunity and began taking weekly lessons that summer. The techniques he taught me in that classroom improved my voice and how I sang more than anything I had been taught in speech therapy. I have studied classical music with him every year since. Now and then, he still jokes with me about my little paper straw and how far I've come since then. My life would be so different without music and the people who have helped to cultivate my love for it. Music and the power of song have truly transformed my life. It taught me to never give up when things get hard but to find new techniques and to fight for what I love. It brought me a family and allowed me to find a place in high school. In the 2024 fall semester, I hope to attend the Wheaton Conservatory of Music. There, I want to major in Music With Elective Studies. This will allow me to pursue both music and my academic studies. I know I want to make a career out of music, but I'm not sure what I want to do yet. I want to use my gifts to help people, possibly as a choir director, specifically for middle or high school students. I'm also interested in working for or starting a foundation that helps underprivileged children gain access to instruments along with instrumental or voice lessons. There, music professionals specializing in different genres--such as musical theatre, pop, and opera--could provide a service to kids who can't afford it otherwise. My choir director always says that your passions should never be dictated by a price tag. I have made so many friends, gained so many skills, and learned so many lessons through the power of music. Music truly is the most important part of our society. It's the rope that binds us all together. Music is my life. In my Junior year of high school, I was accepted into the two advanced choirs at my school. I hope I made that little middle schooler proud.

I remember the first time I saw my school's high school choirs perform. I was sitting on the edge of my seat in Mrs. Townsend’s rainbow-colored classroom, grinning from ear to ear. I sat in awe and watched intently as the students sang. Their faces lit up the already brightly colored choir room. I was starstruck when they started singing a capella, something I had only seen in the Pitch Perfect movies. They created something that I had never witnessed before. At that moment, I made it my mission to be in those choirs. Music has always been a big part of my life. Some of my fondest memories are of my dad and I sitting in the living room and listening to our favorite songs. In my Freshman year of high school, I participated in choir online. But for the first time in my life, singing was hard. I couldn't hit the high notes I always had, and my voice started hurting. It turned out I had Vocal Chord Dysfunction. I had to go to speech therapy and I was given exercises to use several times each day. So, every day before choir, I would sit on my bed with my camera on, blowing bubbles into a water bottle. My teacher, amused, took note of this and suggested I take private voice lessons with him. I jumped at the opportunity and began taking weekly lessons that summer. The techniques he taught me in that classroom improved my voice and how I sang more than anything I had been taught in speech therapy. I have studied classical music with him every year since. Now and then, he still jokes with me about my little paper straw and how far I've come since then. My life would be so different without music and the people who have helped to cultivate my love for it. Music and the power of song have truly transformed my life. It taught me to never give up when things get hard but to find new techniques and to fight for what I love. It brought me a family and allowed me to find a place in high school. The people that I have been in an ensemble with, have given me the opportunity to shine my light and I have truly been changed for the better. Music truly is the most important part of our society. It's the rope that binds us all together. I deserve this scholarship because music and the arts are who I am. I have been in a music class almost daily for my entire educational career, dedicating the better part of my life to it. In the fall, I will be attending the Wheaton Conservatory of Music in Wheaton, Illinois. I plan to take my passion for the arts and turn it into a career. I want to use my music to make the world a better place. In my Junior year of high school, I was accepted into my high school's two advanced choirs. I hope I made that middle schooler proud.

I remember the first time I saw my school's high school choirs perform. I was sitting on the edge of my seat in Mrs. Townsend’s rainbow-colored classroom, grinning from ear to ear. I sat in awe and watched intently as the students sang. Their faces lit up the already brightly colored choir room. They created something that I had never seen before. At that moment, I made it my mission to be in those choirs. In my Freshman year of high school, I participated in choir online. It was around this time that my voice started to change. I couldn't hit the high notes I always had before, and singing started hurting. It turned out I had Vocal Chord Dysfunction. I had to go to speech therapy and I was given exercises to use several times each day. So, every day before choir, I would sit on my bed with my camera on, and blow bubbles into a water bottle. My teacher, amused, took note of this and asked if I would be interested in taking private voice lessons with him. I jumped at the opportunity and started that summer. The techniques he taught me in that classroom improved my voice and how I sang more than anything I had been taught in speech therapy. I have studied classical music with him every year since. Now and then, he still jokes with me about my little paper straw and how far I've come since then. My life would be so different without music and the people who have helped to cultivate my love of it. Music and the power of song have truly transformed my life. It allowed me to find a place in high school and people to share my passions with. It brought me friends I would never have made without choir. In the fall semester of 2024, I will be attending the Wheaton Conservatory of Music. There, I want to major in Music With Elective Studies. I plan to take my passion for the arts and turn it into a career. I want to use my music to make the world a better place. I want to use my gifts to help young people, possibly as a choir director, specifically for middle or high school students. I'm also interested in working for or starting a foundation that helps underprivileged children gain access to instruments along with instrumental or voice lessons. There, music professionals specializing in different genres--such as musical theatre, pop, and opera--could provide a service to kids who couldn't afford it otherwise. My choir director always says that your passions should never be dictated by a price tag. Far too often the arts are taken for granted. We need strong, passionate individuals who will be dedicated to music and the possibilities it brings to our society. The arts need to be protected. By putting a limit on who can access it, we are eliminating valuable artists who can and will show our world the importance of music and the arts. I have made so many friends, gained so many skills, and learned so many lessons through the power of music. Music truly is the most important part of our society. It's the rope that binds us all together. Music is my life. I want to help foster this same passion in others. In my Junior year of high school, I was accepted into the two advanced choirs at my school. I think that middle schooler would be pretty proud.

I remember the first time I saw my school's high school choirs perform. I was sitting on the edge of my seat in Mrs. Townsend’s rainbow-colored classroom, grinning from ear to ear. I sat in awe and watched intently as the students sang. Their faces lit up the already brightly colored choir room. I was starstruck when they started singing a capella, something I had only seen in the Pitch Perfect movies. They created something that I had never witnessed before. At that moment, I made it my mission to be in those choirs. Music has always been a big part of my life. Some of my fondest memories are of my dad and I sitting in the living room and listening to our favorite songs. In my Freshman year of high school, I participated in choir online. But for the first time in my life, singing was hard. I couldn't hit the high notes I always had, and my voice started hurting. It turned out I had Vocal Chord Dysfunction. I had to go to speech therapy, and I was given exercises to use several times each day. So, every day before choir, I would sit on my bed with my camera on, blowing bubbles into a water bottle. My teacher, amused, took note of this and suggested I take private voice lessons with him. I jumped at the opportunity and began taking weekly lessons that summer. The techniques he taught me in that classroom improved my voice and how I sang more than anything I had been taught in speech therapy. I have studied classical music with him every year since. Now and then, he still jokes with me about my little paper straw and how far I've come since then. My life would be so different without music and the people who have helped to cultivate my love for it. Music and the power of song have truly transformed my life. It taught me to never give up when things get hard but to find new techniques and to fight for what I love. It brought me a family and allowed me to find a place in high school. Music truly is the most important part of our society. It's the rope that binds us all together. I deserve this scholarship because music and the arts are who I am. I have been in a music class almost daily for my entire educational career, dedicating the better part of my life to it. In the fall, I will be attending the Wheaton Conservatory of Music in Wheaton, Illinois. I plan to take my passion for the arts and turn it into a career. I want to use my music to make the world a better place. In my Junior year of high school, I was accepted into my high school's two advanced choirs. I hope I made that middle schooler proud.

I remember the first time I sat in my bright, inviting, middle school choir room and saw the high school choirs perform. They sang songs a capella, which I had only seen in the Pitch Perfect movies, someone played a drum, and their soloists lit up the room. At that moment, I made it my mission to be in those choirs. Music has always been a big part of my life. Some of my fondest memories are of my dad and I sitting in the living room and listening to music for hours. My mom always talks about how the first time she felt me kick, she was listening to Phantom of the Opera. I have been in a music class almost daily for my entire educational career. I studied the piano in elementary and middle school, picked up a few chords on the ukelele, and pitifully played Hot Cross Buns on the recorder. When I finally did get to high school, COVID kept me online. It was around this time that my voice started to change. I couldn't hit the high notes I always had before, and singing started hurting. It turned out I had Vocal Chord Dysfunction. So, before choir every day, I would sit on my bed with my camera on, and blow bubbles in a water bottle with a straw. My teacher, amused, took note of this and asked if I would be interested in taking private voice lessons with him. I jumped at the opportunity and started that summer. Before I knew it, my voice was back to normal and I sounded better than ever! I stopped doing my exercises and focused on the technique I was being taught. I have studied classical music with him every year since. Now and then, he still jokes with me about my little paper straw and how far I've come since then. My life would be so different without music and the people who have helped to cultivate my love of it. Music and the power of song have truly transformed my life. It allowed me to find a place in high school and people to share my passions with. It brought me friends I would never have made without choir. What better industry to go into than the one that means so much to me? In the 2024 fall semester, I hope to attend the Wheaton Conservatory of Music. There, I want to major in Music With Elective Studies. This will allow me to pursue both music and my academic studies. I know I want to make a career out of music, but I'm not sure what I want to do yet. I want to use my gifts to help people, possibly as a choir director, specifically for middle or high school students. I'm also interested in working for or starting a foundation that helps underprivileged children gain access to instruments along with instrumental or voice lessons. There, music professionals specializing in different genres--such as musical theatre, pop, and opera--could provide a service to kids who can't afford it otherwise. My choir director always says that your passions should never be dictated by a price tag. I have made so many friends, gained so many skills, and learned so many lessons through the power of music. Music truly is the most important part of our society. It's the rope that binds us all together. Music is my life. In my Junior year of high school, I was accepted into the two advanced choirs at my school. I think that middle schooler would be pretty proud.

"What am I going to do with my life?" I have pondered this question for about my whole life. When I was in elementary school, I wanted to run a cupcake bakery. Then, I wanted to be a fifth-grade teacher. In middle school, I was going to be a world-renowned author. In my early years of high school, I wanted to be a forensic scientist. Now, I'm just unsure. "Who am I going to be?" In high school, I was blessed to find my niche--my group of people who share the activity I love most in the world—the Choir Kids. I found a group of people that valued my voice and made me feel at home. The choir room is my safe space. It's the place I go to escape the anxiety and weariness of my day-to-day life and make something better. In that room, I am part of an ensemble where I can bring my experiences and emotions and contribute to creation. In that room, we are not merely thirty different people but one choir, and we create art together. "What do I want?" I want to continue this profound activity of creating something beautiful in college. My goal is to be admitted to the Conservatory of Music at Wheaton College and study this beautiful art form. There, I hope to explore the activity that brings me the most joy and discover if it is truly something that I would be happy to pursue as a career. Perhaps one day, I will be a choral conductor, an Opera singer, or a choir teacher. For now, I merely want to find out what I enjoy and discover everything that I am capable of. I have attended a choir class almost every day for six years. Music is a part of me. It lives in my soul and is visible in everything I do. Without it, I would be a different person. In college, I aim to discover what I am going to do, who I want to be, and what I truly want. These three questions have frightened me for a long time, but I no longer have anything to fear. I know that I will be guided by the song stuck in my head, the music in my soul, and the melody in my heart.

I want my future self to be armed with the power of knowledge, to welcome mistakes and the wisdom they bring, and to stand strong in my beliefs, refusing to be moved.