I have grown up in the small, working-class Hispanic community of Huntington Park, California. Here, being an artist has never been taken seriously as a realistic job. When I’ve expressed my interest in pursuing art, peers and people in my community always ask “What’s your backup plan?” or “How are you going to make real money with that?”. Still, my interest in drawing hasn’t faded away, and the comments I’ve heard from others has not once discouraged me from following my passion for illustration through my adolescent years. The start of my artistic journey began when I came home from a school day in Third Grade with a drawing of the Cat in the Hat from my art class, having followed a “how to draw” YouTube tutorial on it. I remember being so proud of myself, creating an adequate-looking replica of one of my favorite children's book characters. After seeing a spark of potential in my artistic ability, I gained the confidence to explore different artistic mediums. I dabbled in watercolor, paper-mache, oil pastels, and begged my parents for practically the entire Michael’s Craft Store supply, eventually finding my love for graphite and digital illustration. I went through middle and high school with stacks of filled up sketchbooks and dozens of drawing files saved on my tablet. Looking back at my favorite comic book and manga characters, I was inspired to start developing my own original characters and art style, trying to figure out my place in the art community. Yet as I got older, I began to feel insecure about choosing art as a career choice. I heard my friends and peers around me talking about pursuing traditional careers preached to us by school administrators, thinking I was possibly making the wrong decision. However, I always knew I could confide in my parents whenever I felt like I was losing hope. The unconditional support they have provided me through my artistic journey has been one of the vital things that has given me the confidence to not give up on my dream to be a professional illustrator. As children of Cuban and Mexican immigrants, they know what it’s like to see their own parents financially struggle. Yet even with the “starving artist” rhetoric, they have still given me a safe space to keep up with my interest in the arts, instilling in me their values that being persistent, passionate, and improving on each new thing I do will lead me right where I need to be. These experiences, along with my small but mighty support group at home, confirmed my decision to apply to college as an art major with a focus in illustration. Still, as an only child in a working-class family that doesn't earn enough to pay for college outright, but also doesn’t qualify for much financial assistance, the reality of paying for a four-year education has me stuck in a limbo state. It would be more of a financial burden than not on my family to pay much of the remaining net cost and would ultimately lead to excessive debt and exhausting loans for years to come. This award would help aid in paying for a college education that would allow me to pursue a career where I can more freely create and learn about the arts without falling into serious debt As I continue growing into my adult years and future arts career, I hope to provide a space of comfort and support for other aspiring artists in underrepresented communities like myself who might not have had the same support system I did.