Cancer didn’t just affect my dad; it affected my whole family. When he was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia two years ago, everything changed overnight. At the time, he was living out of state, and I couldn’t be with him when he was hospitalized to start treatment. I remember trying to sit through classes and worrying he wouldn’t make it long enough for me to see him again. When he moved back to Iowa for treatment and to be closer to my younger brother and me, it was a shock to see him. He looked older and weaker, and it scared me. Suddenly, I was trying to keep up with school and work while driving an hour for visits and dealing with the constant fear of what might happen. When his remission ended, things got even more serious. I was his best stem cell match, so two weeks after graduating high school, I became his donor and one of his caregivers. While everyone else was celebrating the end of senior year, I was learning how to give myself daily shots to prepare for the transplant. They were to stimulate cell production and caused bone pain, headaches, and exhaustion, but I kept telling myself that this was the one thing I could do that might save his life. That experience taught me what it really means to be strong for someone else, even when you’re scared. Cancer didn’t just hit us emotionally; it hit us financially too. My dad’s focus was on medical bills and basic expenses. My mom became the only one supporting my brother and me, and I watched her struggle without showing how stressed she was, even as major medical bills for my brother and me grew. There was no money left for college. I knew I had to take responsibility for paying for school myself, so I worked two jobs and budgeted carefully. Cancer drains a family in every way, emotionally, physically, and financially. I’ve learned how to stretch money, plan ahead, and keep going even when it feels like too much. One of the biggest things I learned is that showing up for the people you love isn’t always a big moment. A lot of the time, it’s the small things like sitting in a hospital room, driving someone to an appointment, or just being there so they don’t feel alone. Even when I was terrified about what might happen, I still showed up however I could. I saw strength in my dad as he fought through treatment, and I saw it in my mom, who held us together without letting us see how scared she was about us possibly losing our dad. I try to have that same kind of courage in everything I do now. These experiences are the reason I’m pursuing a degree in Law, Politics, and Society at Drake University and working at the Iowa State Capitol. I want to help families who are going through what mine went through. I want to work in healthcare policy to make treatment more affordable, expand access to care, and reduce the financial strain that so many families face during the hardest times of their lives. Cancer changed my family forever, but it also helped shape me. It taught me compassion, responsibility, and what it means to fight for others. It taught me that even in the hardest moments, showing up matters. And it taught me that the future I’m working toward, one where families don’t have to choose between treatment and basic needs, is worth all of the hard work I’m putting in.