When my brother Reece was struggling with addiction, our whole family felt like we were walking on eggshells. Every day carried the fear of losing him, and I often caught myself holding my breath, waiting for bad news. Then everything changed. Reece not only overcame his addiction, but he made a choice that shocked me, he became a missionary, traveling to places I had never even heard of, hiking through mountains just to share hope with people who didn’t have much of it. Watching him transform taught me something I couldn’t have learned from a classroom. People aren’t defined by their lowest point. Second chances are real. The same person who once seemed lost became someone full of purpose and joy, pouring into the lives of others. That realization gave me a new way of looking at life and myself. Reece’s story motivated me to step up in my own ways. At home, I began helping more with my younger siblings, making meals, keeping routines steady, and just being someone they could count on. At church, I started volunteering in outreach programs, from food drives to community clean-ups. I realized that leadership doesn’t always mean being in charge it’s about showing up, serving, and choosing to invest in others even when no one notices. Most of all, I learned resilience. Life doesn’t promise us easy roads, but it does give us the chance to decide how we’ll respond. Reece could have stayed in his struggle, but instead he chose hope. Watching him fight for that gave me the courage to believe that setbacks don’t have to be endings, they can be beginnings. As I look toward my own future, especially a career in healthcare, I carry Reece’s example with me. I want to bring that same hope and compassion into my work, helping people not just with their physical needs but with dignity and encouragement. His story didn’t just give me back my brother, it gave me a model of strength and service that I hope to carry forward in my own life. Alongside school, I balance my role as a CNA with responsibilities at home, including caring for younger siblings. My parents divorce and their conflict, my brother addiction and I have a sister who was adopted from foster care who was born addicted and now has behavior problems, but all those things has taught me resilience and how to thrive under pressure while supporting my family, my school work and my patients.

When my brother Reece was struggling with addiction, our whole family felt like we were walking on eggshells. Every day carried the fear of losing him, and I often caught myself holding my breath, waiting for bad news. Then everything changed. Reece not only overcame his addiction, but he made a choice that shocked me, he became a missionary, traveling to places I had never even heard of, hiking through mountains just to share hope with people who didn’t have much of it. Watching him transform taught me something I couldn’t have learned from a classroom. People aren’t defined by their lowest point. Second chances are real. The same person who once seemed lost became someone full of purpose and joy, pouring into the lives of others. That realization gave me a new way of looking at life and myself. Reece’s story motivated me to step up in my own ways. At home, I began helping more with my younger siblings, making meals, keeping routines steady, and just being someone they could count on. At church, I started volunteering in outreach programs, from food drives to community clean-ups. I realized that leadership doesn’t always mean being in charge it’s about showing up, serving, and choosing to invest in others even when no one notices. Most of all, I learned resilience. Life doesn’t promise us easy roads, but it does give us the chance to decide how we’ll respond. Reece could have stayed in his struggle, but instead he chose hope. Watching him fight for that gave me the courage to believe that setbacks don’t have to be endings, they can be beginnings. As I look toward my own future, especially a career in healthcare, I carry Reece’s example with me. I want to bring that same hope and compassion into my work, helping people not just with their physical needs but with dignity and encouragement. His story didn’t just give me back my brother, it gave me a model of strength and service that I hope to carry forward in my own life. Alongside school, I balance my role as a CNA with responsibilities at home, including caring for younger siblings. My parents divorce and their conflict, my brother addiction and I have a sister who was adopted from foster care who was born addicted and now has behavior problems, but all those things has taught me resilience and how to thrive under pressure while supporting my family, my school work and my patients. Id love to help youth find rehab facilities because my mom called over 100 places trying to find rehab for my brother! He had to wait until his 18th birthday and he could have died if she wasn't so vigilant in finding him help. This is a pandemic, we can stop it!

When my brother Reece was struggling with addiction, our whole family felt like we were walking on eggshells. Every day carried the fear of losing him, and I often caught myself holding my breath, waiting for bad news. Then everything changed. Reece not only overcame his addiction, but he made a choice that shocked me, he became a missionary, traveling to places I had never even heard of, hiking through mountains just to share hope with people who didn’t have much of it. Watching him transform taught me something I couldn’t have learned from a classroom. People aren’t defined by their lowest point. Second chances are real. The same person who once seemed lost became someone full of purpose and joy, pouring into the lives of others. That realization gave me a new way of looking at life and myself. Reece’s story motivated me to step up in my own ways. At home, I began helping more with my younger siblings, making meals, keeping routines steady, and just being someone they could count on. At church, I started volunteering in outreach programs, from food drives to community clean-ups. I realized that leadership doesn’t always mean being in charge it’s about showing up, serving, and choosing to invest in others even when no one notices. Most of all, I learned resilience. Life doesn’t promise us easy roads, but it does give us the chance to decide how we’ll respond. Reece could have stayed in his struggle, but instead he chose hope. Watching him fight for that gave me the courage to believe that setbacks don’t have to be endings, they can be beginnings. As I look toward my own future, especially a career in healthcare, I carry Reece’s example with me. I want to bring that same hope and compassion into my work, helping people not just with their physical needs but with dignity and encouragement. His story didn’t just give me back my brother, it gave me a model of strength and service that I hope to carry forward in my own life. Alongside school, I balance my role as a CNA with responsibilities at home, including caring for younger siblings. My parents divorce and their conflict, my brother addiction and I have a sister who was adopted from foster care who was born addicted and now has behavior problems, but all those things has taught me resilience and how to thrive under pressure while supporting my family, my school work and my patients. My dream would be to help families find rehab for kids under 18! My mom had to call over 100 places to find a place for my brother and waited until his birthday to get admitted! Why is this even a thing? I know so many kids using and if their parents had more resources they could get help instead of dying. Its a pandemic, lets stop it!

When my brother Reece was struggling with addiction, our whole family felt like we were walking on eggshells. Every day carried the fear of losing him, and I often caught myself holding my breath, waiting for bad news. Then everything changed. Reece not only overcame his addiction, but he made a choice that shocked me, he became a missionary, traveling to places I had never even heard of, hiking through mountains just to share hope with people who didn’t have much of it. Watching him transform taught me something I couldn’t have learned from a classroom. People aren’t defined by their lowest point. Second chances are real. The same person who once seemed lost became someone full of purpose and joy, pouring into the lives of others. That realization gave me a new way of looking at life and myself. Reece’s story motivated me to step up in my own ways. At home, I began helping more with my younger siblings, making meals, keeping routines steady, and just being someone they could count on. At church, I started volunteering in outreach programs, from food drives to community clean-ups. I realized that leadership doesn’t always mean being in charge it’s about showing up, serving, and choosing to invest in others even when no one notices. Most of all, I learned resilience. Life doesn’t promise us easy roads, but it does give us the chance to decide how we’ll respond. Reece could have stayed in his struggle, but instead he chose hope. Watching him fight for that gave me the courage to believe that setbacks don’t have to be endings, they can be beginnings. As I look toward my own future, especially a career in healthcare, I carry Reece’s example with me. I want to bring that same hope and compassion into my work, helping people not just with their physical needs but with dignity and encouragement. His story didn’t just give me back my brother, it gave me a model of strength and service that I hope to carry forward in my own life. If I could start my own charity it would be to help minors go to rehab because it can change their lives! My mom struggled finding a center to take my brother because he was not 18 yet and insurance wouldn't pay for it! Alongside school, I balance my role as a CNA with responsibilities at home, including caring for younger siblings. My parents divorce and their conflict, my brother addiction and I have a sister who was adopted from foster care who was born addicted and now has behavior problems, but all those things has taught me resilience and how to thrive under pressure while supporting my family, my school work and my patients.

Alongside school, I balance my role as a CNA with responsibilities at home, including caring for younger siblings. My parents divorce and their conflict, my brother addiction and I have a sister who was adopted from foster care who was born addicted and now has behavior problems, but all those things has taught me resilience and how to thrive under pressure while supporting my family, my school work and my patients. When my brother Reece was struggling with addiction, our whole family felt like we were walking on eggshells. Every day carried the fear of losing him, and I often caught myself holding my breath, waiting for bad news. Then everything changed. Reece not only overcame his addiction, but he made a choice that shocked me, he became a missionary, traveling to places I had never even heard of, hiking through mountains just to share hope with people who didn’t have much of it. Watching him transform taught me something I couldn’t have learned from a classroom. People aren’t defined by their lowest point. Second chances are real. The same person who once seemed lost became someone full of purpose and joy, pouring into the lives of others. That realization gave me a new way of looking at life and myself. Reece’s story motivated me to step up in my own ways. At home, I began helping more with my younger siblings, making meals, keeping routines steady, and just being someone they could count on. At church, I started volunteering in outreach programs, from food drives to community clean-ups. I realized that leadership doesn’t always mean being in charge it’s about showing up, serving, and choosing to invest in others even when no one notices. Most of all, I learned resilience. Life doesn’t promise us easy roads, but it does give us the chance to decide how we’ll respond. Reece could have stayed in his struggle, but instead he chose hope. Watching him fight for that gave me the courage to believe that setbacks don’t have to be endings, they can be beginnings. As I look toward my own future, especially a career in healthcare, I carry Reece’s example with me. I want to bring that same hope and compassion into my work, helping people not just with their physical needs but with dignity and encouragement. His story didn’t just give me back my brother, it gave me a model of strength and service that I hope to carry forward in my own life. This scholarship could help me pay for tuition, housing and other fees as my mom is a single parent who is still raising my two younger sisters and supporting my older brother in Mexico doing mission work.

For me, Taylor Swift's performance of "All too well" at Saturday Night Live is the most moving! It wasn't just a song, it was a full emotional experience/ narrative unfolding right in front of me. She stood almost completely still on a dark stage but nothing but a red spotlight, a guitar and a decade of unspoken grief and trauma that she finally let go. What made it so powerful was how raw it was. She didn't use costumes or special effects, Instead she used her honest storytelling abilities, the kind that forces you to stop in your tracks and sit with your own memories. In a world where much is filtered her level of vulnerability felt brave. The performance showed how art can turn pain into connection. She took an experience so personnel and delivered it in a way that made me feel "I've been there, I see your pain." For me that's the ultimate purpose of music, to make people feel less alone. Taylor did that exactly that night. Her performance also reminded me that strength isn't always loud, sometimes its quiet honesty. Watching her claim her own story encouraged me to embrace mine, to show up fully, trust myself and believe I can make a real change in the world around me.

I'm a new fan so it was espresso and please please please that lured me in and then I became a carpenter bee with MBF. I also really like her as a person, she's effortlessly unserious and iconic with everything she does yet she also supports important causes. She's just the best. And since becoming a carpenter bee I've discovered her pre EICS stuff and I think evolution is really good. There's more things but those are the main reasons why I'm such a fan. Technically…. Sophia The First. My daughter loved that show and then I recognized Sabrina’s voice on Girls Meets World and I said “That’s princess Vivian!”. I loved her Maya character on that show so much. Then I happened to find her Christmas song one day when I was putting together a Christmas playlist. “Let’s Make Christmas The Whole Year Round” uuuuuugh- such a good song. I remember playing it in the car for a friend of mine and he rolled his eyes at me- I told him “This girl is gonna be huge after Disney just you see!” The first songs I loved from her off of albums were On Purpose, Thumbs, Alien and Sue Me. Because my life had gotten super busy I stopped becoming an album listener and became just a singles listener. Last album I listened fully to during that time was Lady Gaga Born The Way. So I hadn’t listened to any Sabrina songs other than her singles. Back in 2020, when we all had nothing to do, Taylor released Folklore and Evermore. Her doing that made me listen to full albums again and not just singles. But, Sabrina released Skin, but no album, I remember defending her so bad on Twitter after that song came out. Then I didn’t know EICS was released, and the first song I heard from her was Nonsense back in 2022. And I was so wrapped up in Midnights (Taylor Swift) at that point that I didn’t care about any other music. I followed her on a grainy livestream to Coachella in 2024, listened to Espresso and could not wait for her next album to come out.

When my brother Reece was struggling with addiction, our whole family felt like we were walking on eggshells. Every day carried the fear of losing him, and I often caught myself holding my breath, waiting for bad news. Then everything changed. Reece not only overcame his addiction, but he made a choice that shocked me, he became a missionary, traveling to places I had never even heard of, hiking through mountains just to share hope with people who didn’t have much of it. Watching him transform taught me something I couldn’t have learned from a classroom. People aren’t defined by their lowest point. Second chances are real. The same person who once seemed lost became someone full of purpose and joy, pouring into the lives of others. That realization gave me a new way of looking at life and myself. Reece’s story motivated me to step up in my own ways. At home, I began helping more with my younger siblings, making meals, keeping routines steady, and just being someone they could count on. At church, I started volunteering in outreach programs, from food drives to community clean-ups. I realized that leadership doesn’t always mean being in charge it’s about showing up, serving, and choosing to invest in others even when no one notices. Most of all, I learned resilience. Life doesn’t promise us easy roads, but it does give us the chance to decide how we’ll respond. Reece could have stayed in his struggle, but instead he chose hope. Watching him fight for that gave me the courage to believe that setbacks don’t have to be endings, they can be beginnings. As I look toward my own future, especially a career in healthcare, I carry Reece’s example with me. I want to bring that same hope and compassion into my work, helping people not just with their physical needs but with dignity and encouragement. His story didn’t just give me back my brother, it gave me a model of strength and service that I hope to carry forward in my own life. Alongside school, I balance my role as a CNA with responsibilities at home, including caring for younger siblings. My parents divorce and their conflict, my brother addiction and I have a sister who was adopted from foster care who was born addicted and now has behavior problems, but all those things has taught me resilience and how to thrive under pressure while supporting my family, my school work and my patients.