My name is Perla Reyes-Garfias, and I am currently a senior at Oroville High School Wa, pursuing a career to become veterinarian and horticulturist. Throughout highschool i had dreams to help people out, especially within my community and schools. I have recognized that I have to do things out of my comfort zone and actually work towards those dreams. I had participated in starting a boutique in our elementary school with two other girls. We called it the Bee Knees Boutique. I truly enjoyed helping to organize this project, and when we finally finished and began donating items, I discovered that there were children in our community who needed assistance.I noticed a child whose clothes were very old and worn out, and some kids didn’t even have shoes. When I expressed my concern, saying, “It’s going to be hard to be there because many children may not know how to tie their shoes or do simple things,”some people responded by saying they didn’t think we needed to worry because its very normal thing children should know... Their comments made me reflect deeply on the needs within our community. While I have taken on other activities related to my future career, this experience of community involvement ignited a true desire within me to create change. However, I face obstacles, particularly my difficulty in speaking up. I have never took in a chance to be someone who speaks up about what I perceive, hear, or my viewpoint. Yet, as I consider the comments made and the bullying happening at my school, I have been becoming more sercure with myself and more confident to speak up! Though I haven’t yet taken action, I am lookign froward to bring awareness to these issues within my coummity and schools as a whole! In elementary school I heard and seen children bullying another student based on heir appearance, clothing, interests, and even race. I want to ask: Why are students behaving this way? The starting point of the problem lies within the home and at school, and it reflects a form of discrimination that violates our school handbook. This reflection has led me to my own experiences within the school system and highlights two problems I want to address: helping students in need and raising awareness about bullying. I would definitely start a charity with Schools and create an atmosphere for those who need help. I want to make a similar boutique just like in my school for students to get whatever they may like, anyone is welcome whether you need it or not. I personally feel like students do not go to places like the mall. So, Children should not feel ashamed about this so that's why we named it bee knees boutique based on our school mascot. I want all students to feel welcomed not just children but teens as well! I feel like this will absolutely make a difference in communities within their schools.

I am from a small town of Oroville, Washington, where I am currently a senior at Oroville High school and enrolled in the Running start program. My ambition is to pursue a career in veterinary medicine, ultimately earning a Doctorate in Veterinarian medicine. From a young age, I have been committed to the well-being of animals, growing up surrounded by various of pets, including birds, dogs, cats, bunnies, and a tortoise on my family farm. This substantial experience has shaped my desire to become a veterinarian, establish my own clinic and eventually create an animal sanctuary. I recognize that my community faces many barriers, particularly concerning the resources available for animal care. We unfortunately do not have one in our community. There are many indivduals who value certain animals, but I am committed to change that perspective through my work. Coming from a low-income family, I understand the difficulties of affording veterinary care for both pets and livestock. This background fuels my dedication to helping those who struggle to provide necessary care for their animals. I have witnessed situations of animal abuse and abandonment, my mission is crystal clear, I want to improve the lives of animals while assisting my community in any way possible. I am passionate to establish the career path to help as many animals as I can while offering support to individuals who face financial barriers. My experience in rescuing stray animals has been an amazing journey that I have done, even though I am not affiliated with formal organization. I have successfully taken in strays and worked to ensure they find homes by connecting with close family friends who are dedicated foster individuals from local shelters. As I navigate my academic responsibilities, I continue to explore ways to balance my studies with fostering animals that are in need. Ultimately my goal is to create a positive impact on both the lives of animals and the community I cherish.

Growing up with animals has become part of my life, my love and compassion towards animals kept on growing every year that passed till today. I guess it opened my eyes on how animals are either abandoned, abused, injured.... I am determined to make a change to save these precious animals even if they don't belong to me. My dream is to pursue a career in the veterinary field, earning my doctorate degree, owning my own vet clinic , and opening an animal shelter of my own. Yes, this is quite a dream of mine, and yeah it would definitely be a challenge. But, I will not give up until I succeed. I have realized that there are some veterinarians that value certain animals more than others, or like to treat certain animals that are easily handled. I value all animals and I am capable of getting a degree on treating animals that are exotic, livestock, domestic, and even wild animals. Yes, there will be challenges throughout my journey of becoming a vet and after that, but I still want to accomplish the dream of mine. Growing up with animals is the most wonderful memory but there is a sad part several times in our life when the years pass… Sometimes our animal companions pass away due to old age, or complications with their health. You can easily notice that sometimes our companions are suffering and we may not know it until something occurs to them. That's why It's important to take care of our companions' health. I don't want to become a vet for the money, but for saving precious lives. I adore animals, and I don't want to see them suffering or being abandoned. That's why I am determined to pursue a career in the vet field. To see these precious animals live a beautiful life. My own vet clinic with the animal shelter together will be amazing! Raising all kinds of animals, treating them and loving them is what I can't wait to express my compassion towards these animals. I want to make sure the animals have the best, safe, loving homes, and I want to help people who cannot afford vet clinic expenses. Lastly in my community there is no vet clinic, the closest one is 20 mins but they specialize in certain animals, and the other is about 45 mins to an hour away. Which is a big reason why I want to become a vet and own my business to help people with their precious animals. Which I am glad to help change my community and the world.

I want to pursue my dream to become a veterinarian. Growing up with animals changed my life. I started to watch TV about vets and one specific show caught my eye, the famous Dr. Pol. This person opened my interest to help animals on a greater level, which is opening my veterinary clinic. In my community there is no vet clinic, unfortunately, a lot of people have to travel 20 mins to the next town and the other is 45 mins to the animal clinic. It may not be that far but imagine you have an emergency and the vet is either closed or didn't make it on time… another thing is that some vet clinics have a certain profession of animals, in this case, it's just dogs and farm animals. And the other vet clinic is dogs and cats only or they prefer certain kinds of animals due to whatever reason they may have. I notice that some vets do not take things seriously. For instance a chicken, yeah for many people it may be something not worthy to save or attempt to help it, or just sounds ridiculous that you want to save an animal that does not even know you, compared to a dog or cat… But for many of us, including myself, we have a special bond with all our animals, we see what others don't see. I know the difficulty that this may be… growing up wasn't always happy. Unfortunately, life keeps going until it ends. Which is the circle of life. Animals passing away is very downhearted, but I am prepared mentally and spiritually for this passion of mine to help these animals, no matter what even if it's a challenge. I want to get a degree in exotic, farm, domestic , and wild animals... earning a degree that I want is about 8 years or so to get a Doctorate. Yes, this may be a challenge but I will not give up my passion, so I can change lives. I am determined to make my dream come true. If my dream comes true then I will strive not only to open an animal clinic. But also an animal shelter, so I can save these animals. In this world, all kinds of animals unfortunately are mistreated, abandoned, abused, etc.. which is another reason why I want to pursue this dream of mine. I am determined with all my might to make a great positive change in my community and if it does become great as i said then it will change the world. A great passion of mine may seem like a dream, yet I want to change lives and make a great difference. A great heart is what I have. A great hope that I have is to change my community and the world.