My goal for the future is to become a pediatric RN and work in a hospital environment. I was recently accepted into a program and will begin January 2022 and while I am very excited to do what I have dreamed about doing for so long, there is a little bit of anxiety that always comes along with starting something new and big in life. I intend to be fully focused on my studies, making sure that I am getting the best education possible since I will be entering a field that literally involves making split second decisions. In order to do that I plan to work hard every day leading up to school in my current job and applying at different scholarships so that my dream will no longer just be a dream but a reality of mine. When school starts, I am determined to study hard and use every resource that I have available to ensure my success. Asking questions, seeking counsel and mentorship, doing whatever is required for success in this field. I want to completely immerse myself and understand what I am doing so that I can best provide medical attention to those placed under my care and their families.

I have always been interested in nursing and I loved watching kids and babysitting all during my middle/high school and college years so this seemed like the perfect career field to combine the two of them. Being a nurse, the one who is there to calm you, explain things to you, just hold your hand when you are scared among the many other things that nurses do is something that makes such an impact in a person's most uncertain and vulnerable time. I have not had many hospital visits nor am I ill very often but whenever I am there or simply at an annual exam with my doctor, the nurses have always been exceptional. Talking everything out clearly, reassuring me that I was in good hands, that the best care would be provided and meeting my needs whatever they may be...I want to do that for others and especially children because being sick is never fun and it can be very scary so I want to be the one providing not only excellent care but also comfort and support during that time. Part of pediatrics includes dealing with the parents and families which can be challenging as they watch their sick child but a compassionate nurse can help provide comfort in a time where comfort is the last thing these families may feel. I want to be there doing everything I can for my patients and their families, fighting my best fight for their child, being a bright light in a sometimes very dark place. I am also continually in awe of how far science continues to expand and the treatments that medical professionals are able to provide to patients and their families which is another reason I am choosing to pursue nursing. To be able to provide options that at one time were not options and help keep families healthy and together for a little longer is something that I want to be a part of. I like the teamwork that medical personnel have to have as well. No one does it alone but instead it is a team effort and everyone is working in their strength to provide care to the patient who is of utmost importance in that moment. I am grateful for the way that nurses have done so much during this pandemic and I want to say "thank you" and get on team even more after witnessing them in action for the last nearly 2 years.

I joined a new serve team at my local church that goes into a city jail in New York on Sunday mornings and sets up technology, chairs and passes out Bibles and prayer cards so that inmates have an opportunity to attend a church service even if they are incarcerated. I love being a part of that ministry because I get to meet new people and have conversations with them who otherwise would not see many visitors, we get to worship Jesus together and praise Him regardless of the situation that we find ourselves in and just showing up shows that these people who may get looked at differently now in society still matter, they mean something and their life still has value. Serving those in the jail on Sundays is just as much of a blessing for me as for them because serving others has a beautiful way of somehow blessing the server as well as the one being served and I am thankful to be able to make a small impact in someone else's life.

I want the impact that I leave on the world to be one of love. I want to be known and remembered as someone who loved others hard, served others well and gave generously to all. I do not have to agree with you to love you and I actually want to be someone who did not agree with everyone yet loved them as if I did. Love changes everything. It breaks down walls and softens people; you can be heard when you speak in love, your actions can be received when they are done in love and your impact is so much further reaching when whatever you are doing is done in love. Love is an action, love is service, love is a choice and while it can be hard to love others sometimes, I've never regretted doing something for someone in love. I plan to show others I love them in my everyday life in the way that I live and treat them. Love has an impact that can be shown and felt no matter what career path you choose to take and while I am going to school to pursue a career in nursing, I can be loving to those that are not my patients also. I can be loving to the family as they wait on a loved one, I can be loving to my team/coworkers as we go through the trenches of healthcare together, I can be loving to my family as I visit with them during holidays/off days, I can be loving to a stranger I encounter while out running errands. Love doesn't need a certificate or degree before it can be useful. More than a good nurse, I want to be a loving person who changed people because of how I loved them.

My first job after college was tougher than I imagined when I first entered it but looking back I am thankful for the lessons that I learned during that time. I was struggling to get adjusted to a new city having moved and had no family there to make the adjustment easier, had a difficult schedule so it made it hard to get out into the city and meet new people/explore new things and it was winter when I moved so it was dark and cold with lots of snow. Through that time of what felt like isolation, I learned a lot about myself and gained independence that I did not know was inside me. I made a point to make connections with my coworkers since they were the ones I had the most contact with and tried to take every opportunity to get out as was available. It was definitely my most challenging time especially since it was my first time moving so far from all family but it was also the time that I grew the most.

Something that I learned about myself that I find valuable is that I am an introvert and that is olay with me. For the longest time, I assumed that I was an extrovert because people told me that I was and I actually do enjoy spending time with people but when the pandemic hit and we all had to stay home, I realized the value in being alone. I had time to think, make plans and goals and did not have anyone in my life swaying me in one direction or the other. I thought for myself and realized that I am capable of making a plan without running it past all my friends first and going ahead and doing something without everyone knowing what I will do before I do it. I found confidence in having my own thoughts and refreshment in being alone and I love that about myself! I still see, understand and greatly appreciate the value in having a trusted community in my life but self confidence is not something that your community can give you and I am glad to have found that during this last year alone.

I grew up in a Christian household so life, even unborn life, has always been valued and seen as a gift from God. When I was younger, my local church used to take part in a pro-life walk each year and although I did not fully understand what were were really marching and raising signs about, my mom used to walk and we would walk with her and I loved being a part of that walk. Once I learned what we were really marching for, I am proud to have taken part in that walk. To stand up and advocate for the most innocent is something that I now fully understand and do not take lightly. Once a year, many people from my congregation would stand on a busy street in Kansas City on a Sunday afternoon and hold signs as cars drove by, some honking and yelling in agreement and some in disagreement. Pro-life and pro-choice has been a much debated and controversial subject for such a long time but honestly, whether a baby lives or dies based on a choice that another human makes is not a choice that a human should be allowed to make. There is help available for those in situations that they did not plan for regardless of how they got there and far more options on the table than ending the life of an innocent human. Genesis 1:27 states that "God created human beings in His own image...male and female He created them." Psalm 139:13-16 says "You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body...You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb." Our detailed lives were created by Almighty God, a master creator and since humans are not the creator, what right do we have to be the destroyers? Abortion may seem like the most "convenient" way out of an unplanned pregnancy or even a pregnancy of a child that will have many health complications/disabilities ahead but taking away another human beings right to live comes with consequences even if the law does cover you and say it is legal. The law can't and won't take away the shame, pain, isolation or guilt that can accompany an abortion and although serious complications such as infertility, miscarriage and ectopic pregnancies in the future are rare, risks are still there especially when the procedure is done surgically. Although I am not yet a mother, I do have 3 baby nephews under the age of 3 and I am so blessed by those boys. Each of them are different but a gift from God and I treasure them. As beautiful as they are, none of those boys would be here if their mothers hadn't decided that their life mattered, even as an innocent baby, and decided to let them live. I am so thankful for their mothers who made that choice to see value in their tiny lives. My heart goes out to the women who feel terminating a pregnancy is their only option but there is grace and forgiveness in abundance so I will continue to be diligent and pray, march and boldly stand for the right to life because all humans deserve that.

This COVID-19 pandemic has completely changed the course of my life. I was a modern dancer with Garth Fagan Dance but when everything shut down and dance did not look like it was coming back anytime soon, instead of remaining paralyzed in fear and uncertainty as I was in the beginning, I enrolled in a community college to start heading towards a career in nursing. I took online classes for a year and recently applied and was accepted to a program that begins in January. I have wanted to be a nurse for a long time but was dancing/performing while I was still able. This pandemic has shown me in a new light just how important a role nurses play and have always in healthcare. I been so impressed with the courageous way that nurses have responded and worked tirelessly throughout this entire pandemic and I continue to be as I look forward to building a promising career in that field helping others.

My faith and my education are so closely knit together that I couldn't pull them apart if I tried. Everything that I have done so far in my educational goals has all been because of the grace and favor of God. So many times, I was nervous and not only felt unqualified but actually was unqualified for what I was attempting to do yet God came through like only He can and made a way out of no way. I am going to be working toward a BSN starting in January in an accelerated program and while it is an undergraduate degree program, one of the prerequisites to this program is that you have to have an undergrad to apply which I have a BFA in Dance from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. That in itself was God because I began taking formal dance lessons my senior year of high school, which is so late, only after joining the worship dance team at my local church a year prior. I have always loved dance but did not have the money when I was younger nor any of the needed skills to attend a conservatory or make that my career. God opened just the right doors for me to get in at the bottom level and get a dance degree! I then moved to Rochester, NY in 2014 to join the Garth Fagan Dance company where I danced until March 2020 when COVID-19 put everything on a pause. The only way a girl who starts dance at 17 then lands a position in a world-renowned, professional dance company at 25 is nothing less than a miracle and God's hand at work in my life making ways when I did not see a way. While I sat at home during COVID, missing dance but still trusting that God was working His will in my life, I signed up for one online class. That one ended and I signed up for another and after that another. God was still moving in that point in my life as well because dance was always fun but it did not pay well and I was able to take these online classes without taking out any more student loans and He also provided a job for me during the pandemic. He has been so faithful in my life! I applied to only one school for nursing because I did not feel anything towards other schools that offered what I wanted and God did it again. I got accepted into the UR program on my first application! I am now in a season of waiting and trusting Him again because my program is 86K in total and I don't have any of that. God is good no matter how this ends but I keep looking to His Word for verses and promises that talk about waiting on God and especially Psalm 37:25 which reads, " I was once young, but now I'm old. Not once have I found a lover of God forsaken by Him, nor have any of their children gone hungry." The Lord is Jehovah Jireh and He will provide for me; He is a faithful God and I can trust Him because He has never failed me. Waiting in obedience for my ram in the thicket like Abraham did on the mountain top with Isaac. "So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, 'On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.' " Genesis 22:14

The legacy I want to leave on this world after I am gone is one of love. Unconditional love for all people. There are lots of things that are causing division across the globe, especially in the times we are living in, but I want to be one that loves people even if we do not always agree on every single topic. There is a song lyric by Nicole Nordeman that keeps rolling through my head that goes, "I want to leave a legacy, how will they remember me? Did I choose to love? Did I point to You enough to make a mark on things?" The You she is referring to is Jesus because only He can help us to love those who dislike us, do wrong to us, take advantage of us or just do things that would make you not want to love them. I want to rise above what the world would normally do and what my human nature would want to do by cutting them off or getting revenge but instead I want to show love because love changes everything. I do not have to like, agree or even stand behind everything a person does for me to be loving toward them. Love looks differently to different people and if I can show love by letting a new mom go ahead of me at the grocery store, buying a cup of coffee for the person behind me in line, taking time to listen to a child tell me a story about their day...those things matter and they are little moments of love that make a big difference. I want to be known as someone that showed love to all people no matter who they were because people matter. Love changes everything.

My favorite way to help others is to make them feel seen and loved. I once had a mentor tell me that people need to feel seen and loved above all else and that has stuck with me since then. Different people need help in different ways but if they aren't feeling seen and loved while receiving the help, that help in whichever form it may come in, may be hard to be received if received at all. I like helping people by giving of my time since that is something meaningful that you cannot get back. It costs you something to give of your time. Once time is spent, its spent and unlike money or material things which can be remade or replaced, time does not come back to anyone. I value giving my time to help others because there are a variety of things that people can do with their time but when someone chooses to spend it with me then I feel valued and important. I want to help others feel the same way that I feel whether we are spending time together over a cup of coffee, working on a project, having a hard conversation or just enjoying life together. I think making people feel valued and realizing their worth is one of the best ways you can help them.

I am skilled in cleaning up a house and doing a thorough job of it. I clean every night at work and it has always been fairly easy work for me to clean but it is also rewarding to have the next shift walk into a clean and sanitized work environment that you know looks that way because of the work and effort you put into it the night before. I feel like cleaning is a chore that is easily unnoticed when it is done regularly but when it is not done, it is very noticeable and can be unsafe in certain workplaces or environments which is why I take such pride in doing my cleaning duties to the best that I can to ensure a safe and comfortable work/living environment for all. My cleaning skills and speed improves the more I work and I also have plenty of practice cleaning my own home to improve my skills. I enjoy making the space enjoyable for others.

When I was 16, I auditioned for my local church's worship dance team with no dance experience but a heart full of passion for dance and I was accepted! The leaders worked hard with me to teach me and get me caught up since I had not danced previously but as I got on stage that first Sunday, in costume and just danced freely then I remember it being the best feeling ever. I began taking formal lessons afterward and have loved dance even more ever since that day!

I am most encouraged and inspired by the song "The Blessing-live" by Kari Jobe, Cody Carnes and Elevation Worship. I think I listened to it everyday last year! It was released just before COVID-19 shut everything down and the bridge of this song has some of the most uplifting and positive lyrics that kept my hope up during such a scary and unsettling time. This song and its lyrics are taken directly out of the Bible in Numbers 6, where the priest Aaron is blessing the people of Israel and he says, "May the Lord bless you and protect you. May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord show you His favor and give you peace." There is so much comfort in knowing that God was blessing and keeping me, smiling upon me and being gracious as well as showing His favor and giving me peace as I sat helpless and scared inside my apt all last year. This song came out at just the right time in my life and I was calmed as I sang along daily and was reminded of His promise. The best part is that after Aaron gives the blessing to the people, the Lord replies with " Whenever Aaron and his sons bless the people of Israel in My name, I myself will bless them." I have seen God's faithfulness so much during this last year especially so I cling to the promise of His blessing all the more as I continue singing this song and being encouraged by its lyrics.

Being with my family makes me happy! I have two nephews under 3 years old with another on the way next month and whenever I am with them, no matter what we are doing together whether it is sleeping, eating, playing, reading books, etc, I am so happy! Hearing a baby laugh is one of the best sounds in the world- its so joyful and genuine and I could listen to my nephews laugh all day! I am so happy when I am with them. My siblings and I also live in different states now that we are older so whenever I have a chance to visit them or they come see me, it always makes me happy, lifts my mood and brings me joy. Family is such a blessing in my life and I am so thankful to have such a wonderful, built-in support system that I can rely on no matter what I am going through. My parents and the daughter/parent relationship we have as well as the continually growing friendship that has grown deeper as I have gotten older is something that makes me happy. I know not everyone has a good relationship with their family so this is not something I take lightly but it makes me even more thankful and happy that I am so blessed to have a deep and solid relationship with my family.

My utopian vision for optimal mental health in Black communities would include a community where help is not only readily available and accessible but it is actually taken advantage of by those who need it. As a millennial, my father grew up promoting the idea that "we", in this culture, did not need counseling so when my younger sister actually did end up needing to see a counselor for some various issues, it was so hard for him to agree to it then even harder to believe that it was working. The stigma that mental help is for the "weak" or " crazy" would be done away with in my vision and just like a person would go to a doctor for a physical ailment or need, the same would be done for mental health check ups and/or struggles. That shame and embarrassment would be far removed from mental health assessments, services or available help and that individuals would want to get the help they need and that is there for them or get it for their family members who may be really struggling to take the first step toward healing and wholeness. A community mindset would include health and wellness for all those in the community and not just wearing the label community because you happen to have the same color skin or live in the same neighborhood. People would look out for one another and share helpful information with others so that all members of the community thrive. Support would be an action word in a mentally healthy Black community; support in many various forms would be both offered and accepted with no strings attached. Representation matters. Those needing different services or assistance would not be so fearful to reach out and get them because they would be reaching out to someone who looks like them, may have had very similar experiences as them or who may have even grown up in their same neighborhood and are now passionate about helping others and giving back to their community. It wouldn't be as foreign as talking to a stranger who you think has absolutely no idea about your life nor are able to relate. Social justice can be worked toward and achieved through a healthy mental state because when your mind is not battling your own body whether with depression, anxiety, undealt with trauma or other mental entrapments, a person can be free to think clearly and critically therefore allowing room for good and wise choices to be made and advocacy to take place whether for self or others. Just like how our bodies function best physically when they are healthy, best mental health functioning only happens when that health is kept forefront of mind and when things begin to ache, break or not operate as they once did, help is sought out and applied. The time to do better regarding the mental health of the Black community is now...no more waiting!