1. I am currently pursuing a trade in welding and I'm passionate about this career because I come from a long line of welders on both sides of my family, my great-grandfather on my mother's side was one of the first black welders to ever participate in the welding of railroads in Virginia, early 1930's in the conservative state of Virginia it wasn't easy for many black men the find work in certain fields but my grandfather was determined to be a welder and he didn't allow the obstacles of racism or any other misfortune to get in his way and I intend of carrying those same qualities with me on my journey of becoming a 3rd generation welder. 2. My plans with welding in the future are heavily routed in a business that I intend on opening in a few years, as I stated before I come from a long line of welders on both sides of my family. Unlike my mother my father is not from America, he was born and raised in the country of Jamaica and in the Jamaica, the way the homes are built is much different than here in America, the homes are almost entirely built from steel and cinderblocks in order to be strong enough to withstand hurricanes and as a result of this welding is pretty necessary in Jamaica. With the skills I with acquire at UTI, I will one day go back to the country of Jamaica and open a welding business in the more rural parts of the island where it might be harder to find a certified welder that will help you and your family build the homes of their dreams. 3. In recent months was one of the toughest times in my entire life after my grandmother lost her battle with cancer. I planned my move to Houston almost an entire year in advance and the month before my big move my grandmother passed away from cancer. It was such as difficult time for me because she was there my entire life and imagining a life without her seemed almost unbearable, and at that moment I only wanted to be surrounded by loved ones, I wanted to stay in my city because it was familiar and moving halfway across the country where I had nobody seemed like something I would regret. For days and weeks, I thought about whether or not I was making the right decision to move to Houston, and I thought about why I was doing it in the first place, I wanted to be a welder, I wanted to focus solely on this chapter in my life and I wanted to do this by myself as a man, make mistakes, learn, mature, achieve things I thought I could never do, and keep a promise to myself that I made a year ago. I can't give you the answer on how I worked through it because at the moment I still working through it, accepting her death, not being surrounded by loved ones, depression, anxiety, and being at a whole new place, but one thing that has helped to keep me grounded was the thought of achieving something that I know would not only make her proud but also something my would make my family and I proud. Becoming a 3rd generation welder.