Thank you Cat Zingano for this scholarship opportunity. During my childhood years my parents did not have a very healthy relationship. In fact it was pretty terrible. My mom and dad would fight nearly everyday, and my dad would often verbally abuse me and my sisters. and sometimes even physically abused us. A bit later in life my parents divorced, maybe my freshman year of high school and about a year later at the end of my sophomore year he passed away of liver failure due to his heaving drinking. My dad truthfully wasn't a very good person, and even worse dad. He would often yell at me for the smallest things, and I was honestly scared of him and of being at home because of him. I would dread the end of school because quite frankly I didn't want to go home. However even despite all that I still remember the good times with him; when he wasn't drinking he was an absolute blast to be around and I couldn't have asked for better. So even though it was hard to love him, losing him was still deeply sad. After his death I went into a depression, even now I struggle with my mental health, but I have greatly improved. The fight I had to get better has made me realize how important, but finite relationships with people are. It has deepened my appreciation for other including my friends and family, especially my mom. My mom, who is now a single disabled mother, has to support her two children at home including me as a single mother. She struggles to make enough money, as a single disabled mother who could blame her. Our household is well below the poverty line and that's something I can't just sit back for. I wish to fight for my future so I can fight out of poverty. I have learned to fight my mental health, fight to improve my relationships, and fight to better my financial situation and succeed in life. When my father died it was hard mentally. I fell into a harsh depression, I struggled to stay motivated to do anything. I was even suicidal for a while. Luckily I had the support of friends and family which helped me fight my way out. It was a hard fight. Even now I still struggle with the thoughts; sometimes my childhood and the death of my father still haunt me to this day. It was not something I could just brush off, but I fight through it everyday even now. I am in a much better situation now than I was before and I hope to continue to improve. I fight to keep my mind from going back to that dark place. I am really grateful for the friends and family that supported me. With the experience I have earned from my father's life; I have improved but I have a long way to go. I am still in the same situation: a poverty ridden family, living with my single mother who is disabled. I want to fight to get out of this predicament, and I plan on doing that by going to college and getting a bachelors in business and communication to become a financial advisor. I want to be a financial advisor to not only improve my own financial situation, but to help others in a similar situation as me. If my parents, or even my mom knew how to manage their finances they would have been able to avoid the hardship we all have had to experience. I want to help people like my mom, people who need and deserve guidance. To personally succeed in life I need all of these things, healthy relationships, a stable financial situation, and helping others, others like my mom especially and of course my mom. I have struggled with my fathers death a lot, but it has helped me look at the world in a new light. It gives me the clarity to understand what I need to do. I fight to achieve those goals and this scholarship would give me a massive lever I need to use in my mission to fight for the betterment of my family, others, and my own mental health and relationships. Thank you again Cat Zingano for this golden opportunity to fight for my goals and have a better chance in life.

Sometimes it's hard to do the right thing in life. I've never been a bad student or person or anything, but sometimes doing the work I need to do can be hard. However I always get it done at the end of the day. Even if I don't want to, unfortunately life isn't always what I want. Sometimes I even go above and beyond the quota. For example my school life, I have a good GPA and I am taking entirely dual credit college classes this year, my senior year of high school. I will have enough college credits by the end of the year to have the first year and a half done of my college bachelor's degree. I even have joined National Honors Society and plan to stay in for the duration of my high school career and hopefully into my college one too. I have also figured out exactly what I want to be in the future, which many high schoolers have a lot of trouble with. I want to be a financial advisor and my plan after high school to achieve this is getting a bachelors in business and communication. Unfortunately my financial situation makes it hard to pay for college that's why I have went above and beyond on applying for scholarships. I started to apply for scholarships on the first day of my senior year and have already applied for over seventy and counting. Hopefully with the amount of scholarships I will get I won't have to worry about massive college debt after I get my business and communication bachelor's degree, however with my good academics and willingness to apply I am confident in my abilities to get enough scholarships to get by, and am willing to find alternatives if it doesn't work out. Like getting a job, though I used to have a job for about two years, between 14 to about 16 until my employer died. Or receiving financial aid from the government, which would most likely be possible with my family's financial situation and since my father is deceased. Basically I have gone above and beyond in school to help myself with my future career as a financial advisor, by getting a good GPA, having a plethora of college courses done during high school, applying for scholarships early and consistently, and even having my future planned out. I go above and beyond even though it can be hard to stay motivated to do what I need to do. Taking the college courses might be the hardest I have ever worked myself but I am doing it with a smile on my face knowing I am building myself for success.

I am Mason Erwin from Emmett High School and have not earned any scholarships yet, I have learned applying for scholarships can be hard and definitely never guaranteed. It's not too hard to apply for scholarships, but once you go through the process of applying, applying, and applying and dont get one it can be a bit difficult to stay motivated, but I am not only still motivated, but i'm hopeful for the upcoming batch of scholarships. I have learned not only how to apply, but many other things along the way. Simple things such as where to look which has improved my researching skills, to how to write short essays for the scholarships helping improve my writing skills, and to talking with people on questions or problems I encounter helping improve my social skills. It has been a very helpful journey so far, and of course the end goal is to get scholarships to help pay for college, but even the experience along the way has been very helpful in building my overall knowledge and skills. Especially when it comes to social and writing as I want to really improve those two areas. When it comes to writing I want to become a much better writer. While i'm confident in writing skills I want to write a novel, so the better I can get the better. As for social skills, i'm not as good as I would want to be. I am shy and reserved, but this constant need for asking questions is helping me improve. I hope to continue to improve my skills applying for scholarships while also getting accepted by some to have the money I need to support my college career. Applying for scholarships has taught me more than I would've thought it could, skills that would seem totally unrelated were required to effectively find and apply for scholarships. It's obviously hard to win scholarships considering how many people apply for each, and it takes time and effort to write the essays required. I am hopeful however, I am putting in time to apply for any scholarship I am eligible for making sure to put in effort on the essays I write for then. I am also putting a lot of time into the accounts I make on scholarship websites like this one. Scholarships can be hard to earn, but with patience and persistence I believe I can get scholarships and pay for my higher education.

My name is Mason Erwin. I visited my uncle one summer, and he told me about something called investing. Now I have lived with poverty my entire life so curious, I ask what that means. I was young at the time so my uncle told me he would tell me later once I got older. While I didn't press the matter, I knew I wanted to learn more now, and that's what I did. Once I got home I did as much research on the subject as I could and now modern-day, I have investments with my own money through a parent account with my mom. I lost my dad a couple of years ago. So I now live with a single mother barely making ends meet making under 25 thousand a year. This all inspires me to know I want to be a financial advisor. Somebody who becomes very knowledgeable in economics and helps people invest and save their money as smart as possible. If graced with the knowledge of investing and money-saving techniques my parents defiantly would be in a better financial situation while raising their children. I want to give that opportunity to other people, whether that be a parent or even a high school student. The earlier people start watching their finance the better. While becoming a financial advisor will be difficult I'm confident in my abilities to succeed. My uncle has been guiding me and supporting me with words of advice-giving me a lot more confidence. Once I become a financial advisor I would want to guide people on how to manage their finances to prepare them to succeed in their futures, whether young or old, rich or poor, I would help people in need by telling them budget strategies, what to invest in, how to invest smartly and safely while offering my services for a reasonable price. I think this will be a positive impact on the world because finance is a part of everyone's life, and knowing how to best go about finance will allow people to live more comfortable lives. My uncle's comment about finance changed my life, I see him as a father figure now, for that and his support after my father's death. I consider him a hero because he has given me a way out of my bad financial situation and has been a role model for me. I want to change the world by informing others how to deal with their finances in an affordable way. I want to give others a chance I didn't necessarily have a life with financial security. To be a guiding figure for those who need it without being a stressful financial bill. I was lucky enough to learn of investing at a young age, but many can go their entire lives without even realizing what it is. I will advocate for more people to know about investing at a young age giving them a good opportunity to seize and start preparing for their future early.

My name is Mason Erwin, I have lived with poverty my entire life, and a big reason for that was my parents didn't plan out their finances. It doesn't help my dad had no real interest in supporting the family, and divorced my mom leaving her to support her two kids still in the house by herself. While being disabled and making under 25 thousand a year with half being child support she will lose once I turn 18. However it would've been smoother if she had basic knowledge of finance. Not to say she isn't smart, she is, but how can someone know something they never learned. With the right knowledge we could be living relatively comfortable even right now. That's where I would come in. My goal in life and my dream career is to become a financial advisor. I would want to be able to show others how to manage their finances properly giving them a financial chance. I would want to be completely fair with my prices offering an affordable way to save and invest money smartly. While becoming a financial advisor will be difficult i'm confident in my abilities to succeed, once I become a financial advisor I would want to guide people on how to manage their finances to prepare them to succeed in their futures, whether young or old, rich or poor, I would help people in need telling them budget strategies, what to invest in, how to invest smartly and safely, while offering my services for a reasonable price. I think this will be a positive impact on the world because finance is a part of everyone's life, and knowing how to best go about finance will allow people to live more comfortable lives. People like my mom who is a single mother, and has troubles with her money people who could really need help with their financial situation would be able to have someone to go to. I wouldn't charge a penny if I did not help their situation improve, either by making them make money or guiding them to save enough money to be financial secure. If I couldn't do that I wouldn't charge them or give them a full refund if I did charge them. My life I have lived through poverty, but I don't take it as a bad experience, it has helped me grow and realize what I can do. Even with my circumstances im confident if my family had good financial planning we would've been able to live a comfortable life, so I want to be able to give other families and people that chance. I would not only want to offer my services but really advertise what I do and how it could help people in need. Part of the reason my mom didn't get financial aid was merely because she didn't know how it worked. I would make sure people know everything there is to know and give them a great opportunity without worry.

Mason Erwin September 12 2022 College can be a scary time especially for students from a small school like me. However its also a really exciting time, more responsibilities, becoming more independent, getting that much closer to the "real world," a potential chance to "move out," along with many other things. Some of these things can be hard to though. While it may be exciting to move out, there would no longer be parents to make dinners, so you wouldn't have easy access to a healthy diet. While having more responsibility may be fun it can also be very stressful affecting a person's mental state. While it can be cool to be more independent it also can mean less support from others, and less moral guidance causing a troubled soul. Basically the idea of college is fun and exciting, but also scary so its smart to have a plan in mind on how to tackle the new experiences one might face once they go into college. One of the best ways to stay not only physically healthy but also mentally healthy, eating a well balanced diet. It's not easy though, the price of healthy food, combined with the time to make good meals make it easy to forgo eating good food. Yet its so important, so finding ways to budget in a healthy food plan is essential to keeping a healthy mind, body, and soul. Find resources that will help price and time if needed, but find a way. Apps like albertsons provides many coupons for healthy food while also saving money on gas for example. Look online to find meal plans that are affordable. While it's cool to be independent, make sure to keep in contact with your family and friends to help keep your mental wellbeing intact. It may seem silly, but honestly having someone to talk to through normal times and especially hard times can really come in handy for a person's mental health. Allow time for family even though it's cool to be independent because its important to have love and to love to keep a healthy mind and soul. Getting more responsibilities can be rewarding and empowering, but can also be a big burden on mental health and time. While its good to be busy and active with work, its also important to manage time and allow free time. Don't be afraid to have a planner, have dedicated times to do work, eliminate distractions, find ways to make sure work gets done, but don't get overwhelmed. Its a delicate balance which can be alleviated from things like planners and set times. To get healthy make sure to get work done but also don't work so much that its impossible to function. To get the best experience out of college its important to look at what's happening and respond in kind. Be excited for things, but also make sure to manage those things so they stay positive rather then turn negative. Don't forget the joys of life for work, but also make sure to get work done in a timely manner. Don't be afraid to ask for help, and defiantly plan out the future.

Going back to school can be a scary time especially when the returnee is inexperienced in what to do, but it doesn't have to be hard. My best tip is don't be afraid to reuse old stuff, don't feel like it's necessary to buy everything new every year. I've used the same backpack since my Sophomore year and it's still going strong. It would not only save the student money but also a way more eco-friendly way to go about going back to school. My Instagram - mason_erwin26

Mason Erwin Everyone has their own burdens to carry, they carry these invisible problems with them everywhere, every single day. People carry and carry and carry and most times they are left unseen. One bad experience, one bad day, one traumatic event can lead to a person having to carry what feels like hundreds of pounds. I carry my shoes, my socks, my pants, my shirt, my flannel, my glasses, my phone, every day yet the weight seems to never come even close to the weight of tragedy. The weight of burden; always weighs more than any object. Yet even with these hundreds of pounds we—people still can't seem to see it. It's invisible. It's almost a tragedy in itself, a person can go day by day overwhelmed by the weight they carry others can't even see let alone begin to understand. Every single person has their own weight to carry, and just the same everyone can carry a different amount of weight before they cave. It's easy to judge one for being too feeble with their drama, too weak in their coping, or even for someone being too cold in their coping, but everyone has gone through a different experience, that we are invisible to. I was born in 2004 from my mother Heather and father Joseph, neither of which are their true names. My father a forest service worker, government employee. My mother disabled. My father moved us all around the country as he would get a better position in his government job when we moved around. My mother disabled with neuropathy, Sjogren's, and arthritis follows him and takes us with her wherever he goes. Kindergarten, third grade, and sixth grade all years I experienced moves to different schools. It was a tough experience. Every single move seemed worse than the last, as my inner psyche spiraled downward. My father went to Salmon Idaho and lived up there, while we went to Emmett. My father filed divorce papers, and they got divorced. I wasn't surprised, I was surprised it didn't happen sooner. Over the next few years between my 12th and 13th birthdays, my father made an effort to be in my life, he took my sister and I to movies, canoeing, and various other activities. I secretly hated him, but he was still my father, I couldn't hate him. Then when they officially got divorced, I never saw him again. We spent years without speaking, then he died of alcohol poisoning—liver failure May 3rd, I still can't get that date out of my head. It may be selfish or stupid or both, but he was still my father I couldn’t not be hurt when he died. I didn't cry though, he taught me not to. His death was complicated for me, very complicated. I still don't know how to handle it. I didn't get much time to cope with his death, the world doesn't stop for anyone, and I only missed two days of school so life didn't stop for me either. One day for when he died, and one for his funeral. He was separated from my life at that point, it was no excuse to stop my life. So I chugged on, most probably didn't realize anything happened, two days gone probably just sick, or maybe just a doctor's appointment. So I spend my days carrying the life I lived, and the death of my father, and the death of my dog, and my struggles with existence and the lingering sense of worthlessness my father left me with. These weights weigh more than any weight bar I have lifted, and I have to carry them everyday. Most days I can get by without thinking about it, but when it crosses my mind, I feel empty. I don't even know how to feel. If he was a wonderful dad, at least I would know to feel sad, but I can't even feel sad, because I won't allow myself, but I can't not feel sad, because I won't allow myself to do that either. When I moved to Emmett, I was in 6th grade, and I would say that was the worst year of my life. I was depressed, had no friends. He is to blame, for that and most of my trauma, yet I can't forget the good times I had with him, the time when he drove me miles and bought me Yedi, the time when we played Chess and I beat him legitimately and he congratulated me, the time when he drove me around on his motorcycle. Yet here I am socially inept and awkward. I am often accused of being uninterested or monotone, but I was trained that way. If I sounded too happy or too sad, if I spoke up, if I stood out, I would be punished. So I learned to stay quiet, keep a non-interested tone, and to not be too happy or sad. I now have trust issues, low self-esteem all due to him, and I am forced to manage, but I do. So I can only consider myself alright, but the pains of my mental state still burden me to this day.

Mason Erwin 9 September 2022 The social world carries great weight. Millions, no billions go day to day without the care they need. Thousands of cities without proper infrastructure. Even within the United States one of the richest countries, homelessness, poor infrastructure, lack of help for those in need plague the country. Not to mention third-world countries. It's a problem. While it's easy to say the world needs to be fixed actually fixing the problems requires much more than simple words. It's a widespread issue that needs contribution from more than many. It always starts with the individual, so the issue isn't what to do, it's how to get people to do it. Yes helping the old gentleman or lady across the street would benefit the community, or helping repaint the school parking lot, or various other things. It's not that people don't know that, it's that they don't do it or don't think to do it. So then the question becomes, how do we get people to do it? Well, it's not easy, but it stems from society. Normalize helping people, giving aid, donating, and interacting with the community. Encourage peers to help others, encourage giving aid, encourage donating, and encourage interacting with the community. I lived in a poor community, and got the blessing to visit a rich community and the difference in attitude was astounding. I had more interaction with the neighbors and did more service myself for people in need in the two weeks I was there than in the past years I was living in my poor neighborhood. We went hiking with the neighbors, we had a food drive for little kids, and we had neighbors over when we lit fireworks. It was the fourth of July. I don't recall doing any of those during my childhood growing up in my poor community. I've talked with my next-door neighbor, my mom had an argument with the neighbor across the street, and one neighbor, whom I don't even know his name, helped us plant a tree in our front yard. In fact, I only know one of my neighbors name Rachel, but I know more than a few names from my time in the rich community. The point. It's not rich vs poor, it's the fact that the community with more interaction, socialization, and encouragement to help each other did in fact help each other more building up their community in an astounding way. While the other community that lacked a good sense of community not only didn't help each but had the worse infrastructure for it. Was money a factor, well probably? But at the end of the day, the attitude of the communities shows a clear difference in what gets done. If the sidewalk needs fixed the poor community wouldn't bat an eye while the rich would start a fundraiser. That's why we need a better attitude, better encouragement, and better communities. Communities are not just small sections of our world, they are the building blocks of our society. Almost everyone lives in or with a community, if our communities lack so do our society if they thrive so do our society. Little by little one person's impact times a million people or a billion people or as many as possible will make a large effect on not only the community but the world as a whole.