Volunteering with Habitat For Humanity, Advent Lutheran Church, Feeding America, AFYA Foundation providing medical supplies to those in need, and spending a summer clearing debris in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria has taught me the power of community engagement and how it can drive social change. At the core of ethical community engagement is being open and willing to listen to community members' perspective and opinions because no one understands a situation, struggle or challenge more than those actually experiencing it. While volunteering, I served many who weren’t comfortable needing or receiving help. Genuinely having and showing respect and empathy for those we were assisting was as important as the food we were serving or the houses we were building. I also believe that an essential part of community engagement is building trust. It is not automatically given, but it can be earned. Ethical community engagement requires listening instead of dictating to truly understand and make decisions based on a community’s needs. In turn, I’ve benefited from volunteering as much, if not more, than those I’ve served. I’ve learned from and connected with many I would not have met otherwise. Engaging in community work makes me feel a part of something greater than myself. It gives me a sense of purpose. I believe you control the path you live and my path to greatness involves serving others both through volunteering and in the future as a doctor working with underserved communities. I spent my summer vacation helping South Florida residents after Hurricane Dorian. I cleared debris, helped elderly residents relocate, and distributed blankets and clean drinking water to many who had been displaced. The sense of purpose and impact derived from volunteering, stayed with me well past my trip to Florida. Shortly thereafter, I began volunteering with Habitat for Humanity (“Habitat”). I love working with dedicated volunteers and seeing the homes we’re repairing and building take shape. It is immensely satisfying to give families the security of having a home. After volunteering for a couple of years and based on my experience and passion, I was chosen by staff to work as a Crew Leader. I brought on new volunteers, taught them about our procedures and ensured that health and safety protocols were observed and maintained on the construction site. Through my leadership role I learned the importance of listening to community members' opinions because no one understands a situation or struggle more than those actually experiencing it. In turn, their stories of perseverance shaped how I now deal with obstacles in my life. For years I had struggled with my father abandoning our family when I was six. However, I learned from these families that my struggles don’t define me, but how I work to overcome them will. If volunteering means giving to others without personal gain, I’m not sure my work with Habitat qualifies. I have benefited from the experience perhaps more than those I’ve helped on the ground.

One challenge I experienced was living in a single parent household, forcing me to build courage and resilience. My father moved across the world to Uganda without notice. This was a traumatic time for my family and for myself. As a 10 year old boy I grew up quickly and took on many responsibilities around the house, pressuring me to have more duties than other kids my age and even take on a parental role in my household. While my mom was working as a teacher in her after school program, I picked up my sister from the bus and helped her with homework. While other kids were sitting at a dinner table and complaining about food their mom made, I shoveled our driveway for my mom to clear the path when she returned home from work. While other kids were sitting at a dinner table and complaining about the food their parents made, I was in the kitchen with my grandparents learning how to cook so that I could prepare meals for my family. With all these responsibilities, in our household, the most important one of all was obtaining a good education. This challenge armed me with the self-motivation and appreciation for all I have, which has served me in my academics. It drove me to stay focused, work harder, and study more to keep my grades up which I did! Obtaining a good education and keeping my grades up was important because there is a stigma that people of color who grow up in a single parent household fail and do not succeed and I wanted to challenge the stigma. My father never came back and this made me sick to my stomach. But this challenge pushed me to handle responsibility and take care of my family. It also, inspired me to start volunteering.So I spent my summer vacation helping South Florida residents after Hurricane Dorian. I cleared debris, helped elderly residents relocate, and distributed blankets and clean drinking water to many who had been displaced. The sense of purpose and impact derived from volunteering, stayed with me well past my trip to Florida. Shortly thereafter, I began volunteering with Habitat for Humanity (“Habitat”). I love working with dedicated volunteers and seeing the homes we’re repairing and building take shape. It is immensely satisfying to give families the security of having a home. Through my leadership role I learned the importance of listening to community members' opinions because no one understands a situation or struggle more than those actually experiencing it. In turn, their stories of perseverance shaped how I now deal with obstacles in my life. For years I had struggled with my father leaving. However, I learned from these families that my struggles don’t define me, but how I work to overcome them will. If volunteering means giving to others without personal gain, I’m not sure my work with Habitat qualifies. I have benefited from the experience perhaps more than those I’ve helped on the ground.

My name is Noah Lwanga and I am a senior at Lakeland High School. Throughout my life, I have always been intrigued by giving back and helping others. I have volunteered with numerous organizations like Habitat For Humanity, AFYA, Feeding America, and Advent Luther Church and still felt like I needed to do more. Finding a silver lining in the darkest of times, the pandemic solidified my determination to pursue a career in medicine. My passion for science and the human body depended as our nation and countries across the globe battle Covid-19. Seeing how this devastating virus could affect so many people around the world and cause the death of millions sharpened my vision. These unprecedented times shed a light on the disparities many African Americans face daily in our nation's healthcare system. Learning that less than three percent of doctors are African American males fueled me to help change that statistic and become a doctor. Time and time again many African Americans do not get to see people who look like them as doctors when they enter the hospital or healthcare checkups and often do not trust the healthcare providers they see. This leads to them not getting the proper care they deserve as a result. Studies have shown that African Americans are 30 percent more likely to suffer from heart disease and heart failure than our white counterparts. Many sadly die before they are even offered the proper treatment that white patients often get immediately. So my future goals are not just to become a doctor, but a leader in the fight to change the disparities many African Americans face in hospitals across America. I want to be that voice for black patients who are often ignored, mistreated and underrepresented and fight for them when no one else will. Another goal for my medical career is to help build people in my community's trust in medicine and the field in general again after decades of our nation's healthcare system failing them and member of it discriminating, exploiting, abusing, and experimenting on them without disregard of their bodies or how it would harm them. Being a doctor of color isn’t just about treating patients who look like me but is also about educating others who don’t. At the end of the day, there is nothing you can do but move forward and increasing racial diversity in healthcare will insure change. This change can only happen if we have people at the table who are willing to fight for what is right and will take the time to fight for the people who are often overlooked. If members of the black community see others who look like them in our nation's hospitals, doctor's offices and clinics they will start to build trust in a healthcare system that failed them in the past. Diversifying our healthcare system will ensure that everyone gets the same standard of care and treatment they deserve and will improve relations with members of the community. So my final goal is to enter this career and be a part of the change so that no one else in my community has to suffer in silence anymore and stop the discrimination inflicted on them daily.

One challenge that was devastating for a long time ended up shaping my sense of resilience and courage. Without notice, when I was six, my father left my mom, sister and me to move across the world to Uganda, and we had no contact with him at all. This was a traumatic time for my family and me. I had to grow up quickly and take on many responsibilities around the house and for the family, sometimes in a parental role for my little sister, who was three when he left. I always felt the pressure to stay, to somehow make up for the giant hole that was left in our family. While my mom was working as a teacher in her after-school program, I was responsible for my sister, picking her up from the bus and helping her with homework. I wanted her to know that I was there and was not leaving. While other kids were sitting at a dinner table and complaining about the food their parents made, I was in the kitchen where my grandmother taught me how to cook so that I could prepare meals for my family. Of all these responsibilities, in our household, the most important one of all was obtaining a good education. In the end, there is nothing to do but move forward. Instead of allowing this challenge to drag me down, it armed me with self-motivation and appreciation for all I have and pushed me academically. The challenge I experienced has taught me that the experiences or struggles you go through do not define you and you control the path you live and can move forward even if it might seem difficult. Hearing other people's stories who experienced the same situation as me and learning how they persevered and pushed through during the challenging times in their lives taught me that at the end of the day there is nothing you can do but move forward and my situation with my own family and my father who left can not stop me being successful. Instead of allowing this challenge to drag me down, it armed me with self-motivation and appreciation for all I have and pushed me academically. It drove me to stay focused, work harder, and do what it took to excel academically. Taking advantage of my academic opportunities was particularly important to me as there is a stigma that people of color who grow up in single-parent households are not able to thrive. I wanted to challenge the stigma and have been successful in doing so.

After I saw first-hand the devastation left by Hurricane Dorian, I began volunteering to do whatever I could to help residents get their lives back. I worked with organizations like FEMA and The Red Cross to help people displaced by the storm. I helped clear debris and helped elderly residents leave their homes and find shelter. I also distributed blankets, clothing and clean drinking water to those who had lost their homes and were displaced. To do more, I started volunteering with Habitat for Humanity every summer. I just liked being onsite, working on a team of dedicated volunteers, getting my hands dirty and seeing the homes repaired and built take shape in front of me. It was immensely satisfying to put up drywall, paint, do landscaping work and do whatever else was needed to help displaced families. After volunteering for a couple of years and based on my experience and passion for the work with Habitat For Humanity, I was chosen by the staff to work as a Leader. I onboarded new volunteers, taught them about our procedures and then trained them to work on homes we were building. Part of the training involved ensuring that health and safety protocols were observed and maintained, which was interesting to me from a medical perspective. I also helped to organize and pack surgical masks, gowns, N95 masks and supplies that were being shipped to be distributed among hospitals in need in the Caribbean, South America, Asia, and Africa. During that process I was disturbed to observe that numerous medical supplies were unopened and unused, ending up in landfills year after year. One of my goals is to find a way to ensure that no medical supplies ever go to waste again, which is beneficial for the environment and saves money, and funds that could then be used to provide and deliver much-needed resources to those in need. At my school, I have been an active member of the Relay For Life, fundraisers for UNICEF, and a wide range of events that help fundraise for cancer treatment and research, sick children, pediatric hospitals, and support women through pregnancy. I plan to continue my education, obtain a degree in biology and a minor in public health, go to medical school and work with organizations like Doctors Without Borders, Direct Relief, and All Hearts and Hands and others organizations to help people who are in need and suffering after their countries or areas experienced major disasters.

A change and social justice issue that I care deeply about and want to see addressed in this country is the racial disparities in healthcare. Made painfully clear and intensified by the pandemic is the well-reported fact that African Americans do not receive the same standard of health care as our white counterparts. Undeniable data highlights the lack of representation in medical research, frequent disregard for pain levels and symptoms relayed by African American patients, and that people of color do not receive the same level of testing and treatment as white patients. These pervasive racial disparities have had the ancillary negative effect of propelling a cultural pattern of Black men not wanting to go to the doctor either when ill or for preventative care. As a person of color, wanting to combat the devastating effects of widespread inequality in healthcare is the driving factor behind my decision to become a doctor in the future. Attending the Black Men In White Coat Youth Summit and learning that less than three percent of physicians are Black males fueled me to help change that statistic and become a doctor. Hearing stories from doctors, specifically Black doctors, discussing their specialties and what they go through daily intrigued me. They shared their success stories, but also described experiences where their roles and abilities were questioned by patients because of their race. Hearing that this still happens in 2022 made me realize becoming a doctor of color isn’t just about treating patients who look like me. It is also about educating others who don’t. To help address this issue I volunteer with hospitals in my community and help them come up with strategies and ways they can address the disparities African American face in their hospitals and others in this country.

Finding a silver lining in the darkest of times, the pandemic solidified my determination to pursue a career in medicine. My passion for science and the human body depended as our nation and countries across the globe battle Covid-19. Seeing how this devastating virus could affect so many people around the world and cause the death of millions sharpened my vision. These unprecedented times shed a light on the disparities many African Americans face daily in our nation's healthcare system. Learning that less than three percent of doctors are African American males fueled me to help change that statistic and become a doctor. Time and time again many African Americans do not get to see people who look like them as doctors when they enter the hospital or healthcare checkups and often do not trust the healthcare providers they see. This leads to them not getting the proper care they deserve as a result. Studies have shown that African Americans are 30 percent more likely to suffer from heart disease and heart failure than our white counterparts. Many sadly die before they are even offered the proper treatment that white patients often get immediately. So my future goals are not just to become a doctor, but a leader in the fight to change the disparities many African Americans face in hospitals across America. I want to be that voice for black patients who are often ignored, mistreated and underrepresented and fight for them when no one else will. Another goal for my medical career is to help build people in my community's trust in medicine and the field in general again after decades of our nation's healthcare system failing them and member of it discriminating, exploiting, abusing, and experimenting on them without disregard of their bodies or how it would harm them. Being a doctor of color isn’t just about treating patients who look like me but is also about educating others who don’t. At the end of the day, there is nothing you can do but move forward and increasing racial diversity in healthcare will insure change. This change can only happen if we have people at the table who are willing to fight for what is right and will take the time to fight for the people who are often overlooked. If members of the black community see others who look like them in our nation's hospitals, doctor's offices and clinics they will start to build trust in a healthcare system that failed them in the past. Diversifying our healthcare system will ensure that everyone gets the same standard of care and treatment they deserve and will improve relations with members of the community. So my final goal is to enter this career and be a part of the change so that no one else in my community has to suffer in silence anymore and stop the discrimination inflicted on them daily.

Learning is important to me because I gain knowledge and information about something that is new to me. The knowledge I have is power and it will shape who I am today and in the future. The more educated you are the more successful you will be later on. As I graduate high school and enter college next fall I plan to continue my education and learning. I am a child raised by a single parent. My mom is a high school teacher who has always said " Educate to elevate". As I get older my understanding of her phrase becomes evident in all that I do. Whether I am a volunteer who serves my community or participating in a "Ride along" to earn my Emergency Medical Technician certification, I am learning to make a difference that will impact others in local and global communities. I’m eager to dive into my premed major, and taking a courses like biology, political science, and public health. These courses will allow me to learn more about complex infectious and bacterial diseases and how they affect society on a much higher level than I did in high school. I am also excited to take courses which will open up my eyes and allow me to learn more about how politics influences our society, communities, and world and what factors shaped our ideas which were something. Literature, Arts, and Culture study abroad programs will allow me to learn more about different cultures other than my own. While studying abroad I will have the ability to learn a new language and because of my love for cooking, I will try to learn to cook and bake native dishes that I never knew how to do before.