Growing up in Accra, Ghana, I learned early the power of resilience and gratitude expressed in thanks-living (living out my gratitude). My parents, although unable to support my education financially due to limited means and separation, believed deeply in my potential. When a family friend, and my church family pooled resources and stepped in to sponsor my first year of college in Gordon College, in the United States, I felt a profound sense of responsibility to honor their faith in me. Today, as an international student in the United States, I strive daily to exceed expectations, sustain my education, and continue toward my dream of becoming a surgeon. This is my Thanks-living. I am driven by a sincere desire to serve others, which influences my dream of becoming a surgeon. Although I am unsure of which specialty to commit to, I believe things would get clearer as I mature in knowledge and medical experience. Additionally, I believe that my giftings are indicative of my calling. As a 12-year-old, I noticed a visually elusive irregularity in the size and shape of my mother's abdomen. Upon feeling with my hands externally, I hypothesized there might be a uterine fibroid and asked her to have it checked. It turned out her 12-year-old baby was right. Her surgeon was amazed at how I was able to detect this and even make judgement with such accuracy. He further mentioned that the condition would have taken a significant toll on my mom's health if left unchecked or not removed. Thankfully, the surgery was successful, and my mother returned to health shortly after. It was in the heat of this moment that my inexplicable drive for the surgical profession began, and it's been growing till date. In the future I plan to collaborate with international medical and biomedical organizations to make ultramodern clinical and surgical facilities available to people in rural communities or underdeveloped regions, because I believe all people deserve exceptional healthcare. While I strive for excellence academically, I recognize that maintaining a 3.99 GPA and being a Presidential Honors student for three consecutive semesters is not just a result of my own hard work but also the faithfulness of God. His guidance and provision have been with me every step of the way. I have been diligent in my studies, often going the extra mile, but I understand that it is ultimately God’s grace that sustains me through every challenge. This scholarship would be a lifeline to continue my journey. Financial uncertainty threatens to interrupt my education, despite the unwavering commitment I bring to my studies and my goals. Your support would not only relieve the immediate burden of tuition but also empower me to keep pursuing my dreams with renewed focus and courage. Thank you for this opportunity and for considering my story. With your help, I am hopeful to continue my studies and contribute meaningfully to the world as a doctor, someday.

Scholars define a legacy as the long-lasting impact of an action or the creation of a person. Rightly so. However, my inclinations of what legacy is defined as strays from its generic definitions. I believe a legacy is an eternal voice. I believe a legacy is a purpose that lives on even when the originator is no more. I believe a legacy is what tells me what a person stands for even without having to meet the person. Since time immemorial, I have had a stirring within me to heed to that eternal voice. To make that eternal mark. Growing up in Ghana, I was fraught with a plethora of challenges. In a home where ambition was considered 'foolish zeal', curiosity was considered to be self-conceitedness, and innovation was regarded as being troublesome. One may easily write off the givers of these tags as archaic or pompous, but I took it upon myself to look into why my parents and even older guardians had a similar posture towards adventure. Two postulates surfaced after my observation. The behavior was either due to an experienced fall or the fear of falling. I highly doubt that a passionate parent would allow their ward to go through a venture that landed them in despair and desolation. Hence, my overprotective uncle who I observed focused mostly on only what could go wrong and almost never what could go right. This situation took a toll on my development. In their theory, the idea that to learn proper elocution in the English language was to allow yourself to be colonized. Ideas such as the pursuit of education by women being an absolute waste of resources. Upon these flawed philosophies I suffered harsh criticisms from family who was supposed to be my support system and was even chastised for "aiming too high." This leaves the voice that says to me "you're doing too much" in the crevices of my mind in the moment I face a Goliath. In the midst of this, there is also another voice that calls out to me. The voice of generations to come. The voice of the many beneficiaries of the price I decide to pay today. Just as I may benefit from the price Dr. Samuel Attoh paid years ago, that speaks today. The voice of Legacy. Legacy is the voice that speaks to my drained body, mind and soul when the going gets tough to keep moving. The voice of legacy is what tells me that "I can save lives, if I allow myself." The voice of legacy is hearkens to my ears daily and keeps me determined to pursue my aspirations of serving as a Medical doctor to save the lives of many, irrespective of my financially and philosophically constrained background. This voice drives me to defy all odds and be the first and youngest of my siblings to dare study Medicine in the United States away from family, friends, familiar faces and races. I stepped out in faith knowing God will provide all my needs. This voice tells me, that in the near future, the driver of a paradigm shift in the African continent and the world at large is the youth of today who have developed the ears and the heart to hear the cry of the voice of legacy. The voice that evokes transformation of minds and the actualization of passions that serve humanity. I certainly do not have it all figured out, especially financially, but something within me yearns to serve humanity and I will listen to the voice of legacy. Thank you.

Shalom! Quite frankly, I have come to learn that the faithfulness of God is never a function of circumstances, but a depiction of His character. Why? God made us humans to have dominion and exercise stewardship over all of creation. Genesis 1:26-28. Given this commandment, I ensure every opportunity I have to glorify God is effectively utilized. I began learning how to play the piano and by the supernatural hand of God, and determination, I steward God's musical gifts upon my life and have the privilege of serving as a multi-instrumentalist and Band Director at my local church, Royalhouse Chapel International, Oil Dome, as well as multiple worship branches currently at Gordon College where I lead a students' fellowship with experience from youth ministry at the headquarters of Royalhouse Chapel International in Accra, to encourage and empower the youth with the truth of God's word. I have always trusted God for an opportunity to pursue higher education, that would allow me to serve my passion of rendering God-honoring service in Medicine since my High School degree in General Science simply wouldn't suffice. Since my parents separated back home, the pre-existing menace of financial difficulty morphed into a whole new creature. In the eye of this storm, I served as the Chapel's Music director and Boys' Senior Prefect in my high school (Achimota School) in Ghana. As I worked hard and believed God to actualize my aspirations, some recruiting officers from Gordon College appeared on my high school's campus, and I seized the opportunity to learn more about this Christian college. At the end of the conversation, the recruiters were willing to give this young man from Ghana a shot at serving his passion to minister health to God's people. A great door for effective work had been opened to me, but my financial standing seemed to be the largest adversary. I petitioned the Lord, and by the divine provision of Jehovah Jireh, I was able to afford to take the SAT and scored in the 90th percentile for my year. The LORD used strangers (I'd like to call angels) to cater for my expenses and even one person agreed to handle my tuition. I hit the ground running by quickly serving at a mission of my local church and serving my gifts of music at Gordon College in combination with long hours of work for personal upkeep amidst academic diligence. To God's glory, I finished the first semester with a 3.98 GPA, only to be greeted by the grim surprise of abandonment by the man who agreed to pay my fees. Now, here I am as an international pre-medical student with the opportunity to actualize my passion for solving problems of human health by ministering the healing power of God, however, no means to take care of the associated financial responsibility. Combining the academic rigor of my course with extensive periods of working per my calculations would not come close to covering even 20% of my tuition, however this scholarship covers my entire Fall semester tuition. By the arm of flesh, no man shall indeed prevail. I have learned that God, who is faithful, works through humans to help his children, and the Jim Maxwell Memorial Scholarship, I believe, is an opportunity for me to experience the mighty help of God. I appreciate you for this opportunity and your willingness to be a blessing to children of the Most High God such as myself. Indeed, this is a tremendous investment into my future and I pray that the LORD richly blesses all your endeavors. Thank you!

One central theme of life clung to me as a growing boy; the power of innovation to effect limitless possibilities. Especially in the life of mankind and the field of healthcare is no exception. I believe anything is possible and that we can make a difference by being just who we are in collaboration with each other. In line with this longstanding revelation, I had as a child, I developed a unique sensitivity to the wellbeing of others. This mindset was based on the value of human life and how humanity has a crucial role in protecting it. My view of the field of healthcare is in two broad categories. Preventative Healthcare, (Public Health, Kinesiology etc.) and Administrative Healthcare (MDs Dos etc.) These have a symbiotic relationship with one focusing on preventative healthcare and the other involved in administering healthcare practices to patients in a hospital, as their categorizations imply. Some of the diseases that afflict people all over the world today are because of lifestyle choices and sometimes ignorance. However, the question I ask myself is this: “Should these people have to die even as preventative healthcare is being promoted?” This screamed the necessity of getting involved in healthcare with the gift of innovation we are all blessed with, contributing my quota in mitigating the sufferings and possible losses we may face should the focus be on preventative healthcare in isolation. Administrative healthcare is how I intend to use my strengths to best serve others. In pursuit of this burning passion to support the field of healthcare, I took the SAT even as a young man growing up in a middle-class family in Ghana, West Africa, whose parents were separated and didn’t have stable jobs. This same young man around that time, was afflicted with the dreadful COVID-19 disease and walked the plank off and onto the ship of life as he knew it. Twice. Gracefully, I was accepted to quite a few schools in the United States to study Health Sciences with a pre-med concentration, and though the financing proved quite cumbersome due to the staggering conversion rates, an old friend of my father agreed to finance my education abroad. In excitement, I applied for my visa and packed my bags. I got the visa to study and gleefully hopped on the first plane to Boston, Massachusetts to begin my pre-med journey at Gordon College, ecstatic of this dream come true. August 16, 2023. After over 12 hours in transit and 20 hours in flight, I touched down in Boston, only to find out after the first half of my first semester that this friend of my dad had a “change of mind.” As an international student thriving with a 4.0 GPA in an accredited college, this was not the time for such an unpleasant surprise. Picking up enough shifts to cover my legal allowance of work hours to finance part of my tuition, there remains a financial gap, which a medical scholarship such as this Manny and Sylvia Weiner Medical Scholarship can close. To be sincere, the amount of academic work I do to compensate for the worked hours leaves me tired and sometimes drained, and these make the path to becoming a Medical Doctor unnecessarily tedious for me. The collaborative efforts in Preventative and Administrative healthcare are what I believe could answer the health crises in our world today, and the story of my life has shaped me into a young man with a mind ready to innovate, adapt and overcome.

A journey of a thousand miles truly begins with one, and my journey to the West from Ghana, my motherland, has proven rightly so. I have an ambition to touch my generation with the power of God in the field of healthcare and I am fully aware that service to God through man's service must be done with excellence. Hence, my decision to study in the Health Sciences program in the United States. A pathway fraught with many obstacles, yet my eyes are set on the day my medical knowledge will save the life of my patient diagnosed with a treacherous disease such as cancer, or even restorate a hopeless surgical situation. Since my passion for saving lives and representing God burns brightly within me, the harsh reality of financial constraints looms ominously in the background. With my father retired from a middle-income biodiversity startup and my mom sewing clothes to care for me and my siblings in Ghana, the ever-widening dollar-to-cedi rate makes it almost impossible to afford the tuition costs for even a semester in the US without the miraculous intervention of God, fiscally. After writing the SAT and Duolingo English test, and applying to a few schools whose application processes were friendly to my background, I was privileged to be accepted into Gordon College to pursue my dream course, and in trusting God for the best, everything fell in place. From divine intervention for the processing of my visa and the payment of a few other fees by generous donors from my church. One of such even promised to pay for my tuition. Upon finally arriving on campus, I was left destitute with this generous donor out of sight, and my parents economically handicapped. Option A would be to call it a wrap and hop on the next available flight back to Accra with the rest of my savings, broken, betrayed and devastated, or trust the process and let my light shine even in the dark season I face. To persevere. What I do have now is the period of grace shown towards me by the Gordon College community and an opportunity to work an on-campus job. While this is very kind, the rigor of my major renders me indispensable to working long hours. I am fully aware that Gordon College recognizes and appreciates the academic strides I have attained even in these few months, nevertheless, the college has done its best in terms of scholarships and funding, and the tuition costs still loom over my shoulder. How then can I bridge this financial Gap? This International Student Scholarship is one major avenue. An opportunity such as this would help tremendously reduce the remaining tuition to be paid or at best foot the bill, and this will poise me for an even better academic performance, knowing that my tuition is taken care of, or at least heavily subsidised. This scholarship does just that for me. Also, as a beneficiary of this scholarship in my dream field as a medical doctor, I believe I will be financially competent to assist brilliant but fiscally constrained international students in achieving their academic goals. We are one world, one people, the Imago Dei. Each of us can change the world by being the change we wish to see. Even by lending this African student a helping hand today.