The loud scream that came from my parents room was enough to make my siblings and I stop what we were doing and just stare at each other in confusion of what was to happen next. My mother was screaming and crying. The sounds of things being thrown around, the opening and slamming of dresser drawers could be heard in between her cries and screams. What was happening? What did dad do? What should us kids be doing? Where should we be right now? A few moments later, my dad walked out with a suitcase in his hand, and a look of disappointment on his face. He hugged us and walked out. This was the day my parents separated. Sure challenges happen to us all, but how do you overcome them? Do you feel defeated by challenges? Or do you use that opportunity to step up and rise up? I have learned to step up and rise up with my head held high. I am not the first and will not be the last to face obstacles or challenges. There is a quote by Roger Crawford that my mom would recite often. The quote says “being challenged in life is inevitable, being defeated is optional.” Thinking back, I’m not sure if my mom reciting this quote out loud was for us children, or for herself. Regardless, this quote has helped me through, reminding me that I can change the trajectory of defeat and come out on top. Being in a now divorced and single parent home, presented many many challenges for my siblings and I. Being that I was the oldest; well, you can guess, a lot of unannounced pressure was on me. My three younger siblings were looking up to me whether I liked or wanted it or not. The moment I realized this, this gave me a spark to be intentional in this journey of overcoming the challenges. During this process, I heard a lot of people telling my mother, “the children will be fine, they are resilient. They will bounce back and adapt before you.” As my mother began to heal, I noticed the strength she had of being such a strong single mother to the four of us children and always showing up for us no matter what. This has shaped me to learn my self worth and value and to not allow anyone to come and disturb it. My eyes are set on the prize/goals of becoming a black, female dentist. If you haven’t noticed by now, my mother is the one responsible for supporting me the most to reaching many goals, but specifically my educational goals. I have seen as well as heard stories from her childhood friends of how smart and involved my mother was in school. My mom has been available many nights were I felt defeated. She knew the right moments a hug or a warm glass of tea was needed. My mother stayed up late to help me study for tests and quizzes, she taught me a number of study methods and habits and always provided words of encouragement and motivation. I can honestly say that I wouldn’t be where I am today if it wasn’t for the strength and support from my mother.

My name is Nevaeh and I am the oldest of four siblings to a single mother household. I have worked hard throughout my entire school years, achieving and maintaining a high GPA, honors classes, as well as advanced placement courses and lots of extracurricular activities in hopes that I would not have to worry about college tuition and fees. The reality is that a lot of dreams are crushed after working hard to excel, only to be told that they can continue on with their goals as long as they pay the remaining school balance. My goal is to continue my education to become a pediatric dentist, without the financial burden. My prayer is that the cost of college does not hinder my ability to achieve my goal. Growing up in a family of predominately medical/healthcare professionals, I knew from a young age that I wanted to do something in healthcare. My mom would always tell me about how she grew up in a single parent home and while she learned so much from her independent mother, she never wanted that to be the story of her children. She fought hard, however, after 13 years of marriage, one of her biggest fears became her reality. My mother told me stories of how her mother worked hard to not let being a single mother affect the trajectory of her life and although it came later in life, she finished. Seeing and hearing the great strength of the immediate women in my life, empowers me to stay the course of my goals, no matter what obstacles may come. I remember having another conversation with my mom about overcoming fears. It was shortly after this conversation that I made it a goal to change my anxiety and fears of going to the dentist into me being the dentist and creating unforgettable and comforting experiences for my pediatric patients, especially those that normally have anxiety when it comes to the dentist. Being awarded this scholarship will help me achieve my dream of being a pediatric dentist by helping to cover the expenses of my first year of college. Besides leaving home from the comfort and protection of your family and stepping out into the beginning stages of adulthood, the next scariest part is how will I cover the expenses to achieve my dream? Having these expenses covered will help to alleviate the BIG financial burden and anxiety that comes with not knowing how your schooling will be covered. This will also allow me to put all my focus and efforts into my studies so that I can continue to excel. Growing up, I always heard “hard work pays off”. Having worked very hard throughout K-12, it would be such a relief to see my hard work come into fruition and pay off my college expenses. Thank you for considering me for this scholarship and assist in making my dreams come true.

What is the purpose of life if you do not make a single positive impact? What is life knowing you’ve made a positive impact? Just one positive impact can have a trickle effect, causing or creating more and more impacts. Imagine being in a career that can medically have a positive impact on people daily. My name is Nevaeh and my dream is to be a pediatric dentist, making a positive impact on patients daily. I am the oldest of four siblings to a single mother household. I have worked hard throughout my entire school years, achieving and maintaining a high GPA, honors classes, as well as advanced placement courses and lots of extracurricular activities in hopes that I would not have to worry about college tuition and fees. The reality is that a lot of dreams are crushed after working hard to excel, only to be told that they can continue on with their goals as long as they pay the remaining school balance. My goal is to continue my education to become a pediatric dentist, without the financial burden. My prayer is that the cost of college does not hinder my ability to achieve my goal. Growing up in a family of predominately medical/healthcare professionals, I knew from a young age that I wanted to do something in healthcare. One of the memories of my first favorite Christmas gift was a Doc Mcstuffins doctor play set that included a white coat, stethoscope and the rest of the kit. I wanted to be a doctor. It wasn’t until I was about 11 years old after I had the most terrifying, yet life transforming, experience at the dentist that I had been frequenting for the last 5 years, that my dream of being a dentist was born. I needed to have a baby tooth removed but the dentist was not gentle and was not patient enough to want to work with a scared and terrified young me. This dentist that didn’t desire to have patience with a frightened child referred me to a pediatric dentist. After my appointment at the pediatric dentist and my baby tooth was removed, I had another conversation with my mom about overcoming my fears and how I implemented that at that appointment. The pediatric dentist was so gentle and patient with me, making a very relaxed atmosphere which helped to ease my high anxiety and fears. It was shortly after this that I dreamed about being a nice, loving and patient pediatric dentist and creating unforgettable and comforting experiences for my pediatric patients, especially those that normally have anxiety when it comes to the dentist. Being awarded this scholarship will help me achieve my dream of being a pediatric dentist by helping to cover the expenses of my first year of college. Besides leaving home from the comfort and protection of your family and stepping out into the beginning stages of adulthood, the next scariest part is how will I cover the expenses to achieve my dream? Having these expenses covered will help to alleviate the BIG financial burden and anxiety that comes with not knowing how your schooling will be covered. This will also allow me to put all my focus and efforts into my studies so that I can continue to excel. Growing up, I always heard “hard work pays off”. Having worked very hard throughout K-12, it would be such a relief to see my hard work come into fruition and pay off my college expenses. Thank you for considering me for this scholarship and assist in making my dreams come true.

Imagine wanting to have a career as a dentist but not being able to because you are low income and your parents don’t have the money? Having your dreams crushed right before your very eyes is something I don’t want to imagine. My name is Nevaeh and I am the oldest of four siblings to a single mother household. I have worked hard throughout my entire school years, achieving and maintaining a high GPA, honors classes, as well as advanced placement courses and lots of extracurricular activities in hopes that I would not have to worry about college tuition and fees. The reality is that a lot of dreams are crushed after they have worked hard to excel, only to be told that they can continue on with their goals as long as they pay the remaining school balance. My goal is to continue my education to become a pediatric dentist, without the financial burden. My prayer is that the cost of college does not hinder my ability to achieve my goal. Growing up in a family of predominately medical/healthcare professionals, I knew from a young age that I wanted to do something in healthcare. One of the memories of my first favorite Christmas gift was a Doc Mcstuffins doctor play set that included a white coat, stethoscope and the rest of the kit. I wanted to be a doctor. It wasn’t until I was about 11 years old after I had the most terrifying, yet life transforming, experience at the dentist that I had been frequenting for the last 5 years, that my dream of being a dentist was born. I needed to have a baby tooth removed but the dentist was not gentle and was not patient enough to want to work with a scared and terrified young me. This dentist that didn’t desire to have patience with a frightened child referred me to a pediatric dentist. After my appointment at the pediatric dentist and my baby tooth was removed, I had another conversation with my mom about overcoming my fears and how I implemented that at that appointment. The pediatric dentist was so gentle and patient with me, making a very relaxed atmosphere which helped to ease my high anxiety and fears. It was shortly after this that I dreamed about being a nice, loving and patient pediatric dentist and creating unforgettable and comforting experiences for my pediatric patients, especially those that normally have anxiety when it comes to the dentist. Being awarded this scholarship will help me achieve my dream of being a pediatric dentist by helping to cover the expenses of my first year of college. Besides leaving home from the comfort and protection of your family and stepping out into the beginning stages of adulthood, the next scariest part is how will I cover the expenses to achieve my dream? Having these expenses covered will help to alleviate the BIG financial burden and anxiety that comes with not knowing how your schooling will be covered. This will also allow me to put all my focus and efforts into my studies so that I can continue to excel. Growing up, I always heard “hard work pays off”. Having worked very hard throughout K-12, it would be such a relief to see my hard work come into fruition and pay off my college expenses. Thank you for considering me for this scholarship and assist in making my dreams come true.

The loud scream that came from my parents room was enough to make my siblings and I stop what we were doing and just stare at each other in confusion of what was to happen next. My mother was screaming and crying. The sounds of things being thrown around, the opening and slamming of dresser drawers could be heard in between her cries and screams. What was happening? What did dad do? What should us kids be doing? Where should we be right now? A few moments later, my dad walked out with a suitcase in his hand, and a look of disappointment on his face. He hugged us and walked out. This was the day my parents separated. Sure challenges happen to us all, but how do you overcome them? Do you feel defeated by challenges? Or do you use that opportunity to step up and rise up? I have learned to step up and rise up with my head held high. I am not the first and will not be the last to face obstacles or challenges. There is a quote by Roger Crawford that my mom would recite often. The quote says “being challenged in life is inevitable, being defeated is optional.” Thinking back, I’m not sure if my mom reciting this quote out loud was for us children, or for herself. Regardless, this quote has helped me through, reminding me that I can change the trajectory of defeat and come out on top. Being in a now divorced home, presented many many challenges for my siblings and I, and being that I was the oldest. Well, you can guess, a lot of unannounced pressure was on me. My three younger siblings were looking up to me whether I liked or wanted it or not. The moment I realized this, this gave me a spark to be intentional in this journey or overcoming the challenges. During this process, I heard a lot of people telling my mother, “the children will be fine, they are resilient. They will bounce back and adapt before you.” As my mother began to heal, I noticed the strength she had of being such a strong single mother to the four of us children and always showing up for us no matter what. This has shaped me to learn my self worth and value and to not allow anyone to come and disturb it. My eyes are set on the prize/goals of becoming a black, female dentist. Being in the medical/healthcare field takes resilience and determination to stay the course and finish. I believe that having this knowledge sets me a part and equips me for success. It definitely helps having a mother who is such a strong and resilient role model to me.

“13 Reasons Why” on Netflix was the first to come to mind when asked to name your absolute favorite Netflix series. Where do I even begin? Why is high school so hard? Why are there bullies? What is depression? What does depression look like? How do you answer the hard questions? This series was very relatable to me, living as a high school student and surrounded by the very topics discussed throughout the entire series. While this was a very hard viewing, because it was so real, so much light was shed on the everyday struggles of the average high schooler. Things that you would never know that the friends and classmates are going through on a daily, most of whom manage to survive while others’ stories end abruptly. With each reason of why revealed, it became harder and harder to bare the thought that anybody would have to go through that alone, but not really alone (such a hard phenomenon to grasp). How can someone feel so alone, but yet have many interactions with many different people daily? As I watched “13 Reasons Why”, I began to ponder and find things that related specifically to me, to my friends. I began to wonder are there things or signs that I’m missing amongst my friends, are they suffering and I’m right here but not right there with them. I began to wonder, am I suffering and not fully aware? I began to have a deep self evaluation of my life and my family. It was at this time that my journey with therapy began, not because of any one thing, but because what I was watching had brought so many questions and realities to light. At 10 years of age, during my 5th grade year, my mom received a phone call that made her cry. She cried for over 15 minutes before she came and sat me down and just hugged me and continued to cry. I was oh so confused, but enjoyed this moment of hugging my mother, feeling like I was doing a great job of comforting my mother. She finally took a deep breathe and told me that a friend of mine had committed suicide. At 10 years old, I didn’t know how to process this information. How? Why? And a million other questions swirled through my mind after a few moments of absolute numbness. My mother and I sat there and hugged for over an hour. “13 Reasons Why” was so captivating and realistic that I had many moments where I had to remind myself that this was not my life, friends, or high school. I had to take many breaks throughout this series to ensure that I was able to separate the series from my reality. I went around school suggesting for my peers to watch this to be informed and cognitive of the life among us and those around us. I made sure to give a big warning to the sensitive nature of the series and triggering parts. I never had a series do to me what “13 Reasons Why” did to me. I felt extremely heavy from the topics discussed, but was able to see that people are silencing struggling, everyday, all around us. It made me ponder, what can I do to be a help to myself and others. I am still in therapy and have become an advocate to my peers and encouraging them to get into therapy, especially when they don’t feel like anything is even wrong.