The miasma of animal feces and garbage accompanied the polluted air as I sauntered through the humble streets of Asmara in the sweltering heat. Mud-covered carcasses and animal skin littered the ground. Individuals struggling with homelessness congregated on the unpaved sidewalks full of deep potholes, while herds of cattle, goats, or sheep lingered in the streets. Droughted villages have not seen rain for days, leaving little to no water for drinking, bathing, and washing clothes. During a six-week visit to my family in the summer of 2019, I experienced a glimpse of my parent’s upbringing, which painted a stark contrast between life in the United States and Eritrea. Living in deprived conditions, where drinking tap water is a gamble and solar-charged electronics are a necessity, made me determined that I wanted to live my dream life cultivating ways to address the effects social determinants have on healthcare access. My name is Saron Araya and I am a first-year medical student at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. My drive to pursue a career in medicine is deeply influenced by growing up in a family of Eritrean refugees and immigrants who have experienced living in conditions of scarcity. This background has ignited a strong desire within me to advocate for cultural humility in order to address healthcare disparities effectively. Aside from my fascination with the science behind medicine, my summer trip to Eritrea made me certain that I wanted to become a doctor who serves underrepresented communities like my own. One reason being my parents left their families and dreams in Eritrea to provide me with the educational opportunities they did not have; they uprooted their lives so that being underserved was not my reality. Witnessing the disadvantaged living conditions of their childhood made me value where I came from and strengthened my desire to serve these types of communities in Georgia. Through my public health background and clinical experience, I have learned the importance of addressing symptoms with the context that drives them socially, which helps us understand what may hinder healthcare access or a patient's personal investment in their health. Thanks to my parent's sacrifices, I have developed essential qualities such as empathy, persistence, curiosity, and the ability to apply knowledge, medical training, and experiences to problem-solving. These qualities are crucial for physicians who aspire to make a significant impact on underserved communities. I want to continue this momentum by attending medical school, which will provide me with more leverage as well as the knowledge and technical skills required to address the lack of healthcare access and take on the voice of marginalized patients. While planning for matriculation, I am actively seeking scholarships of any amount, to assist in covering my cost of attendance. As a low-income, first-generation student, I have been financially supporting myself and intend to do so for the next four years of my medical education entirely through loans. Therefore, the Dr. Jade Education Scholarship will help alleviate my financial burdens, allowing me to fully focus on my studies and extracurricular commitments at PCOM.

My greatest challenge was growing up bicultural and having to assimilate into American culture while juggling my parents’ expectations and behaviors in a world that did not quite fit into Eritrean norms. For a long time, I switched between two languages, cultures, and identities, and I spent much of my childhood struggling to find a sense of belonging, which something led me to conceal parts of my own identity like altering the pronunciation of my name to sound less ethnic. The assimilation of my parents also caused me to grow up faster than any child should have. At a young age, I translated for my parents, filled out governmental paperwork, and help raise my younger siblings. As a result, I find that I have a gap in my childhood experiences. Over time, I learned to love my unique circumstances and embrace my differences no matter what my environment looks like.