Some people have one passion that shapes their future. I have two. One is nursing, where I hope to make a difference in the lives of children and their families. The other is baking, which started as a way for me to manage anxiety and has grown into a creative outlet and small business. Nursing is the career I’ve chosen, but baking is the passion that helps me express myself and find comfort. I didn’t start baking because I wanted to run a business. I started baking because it helped me cope with anxiety. Measuring ingredients, baking cupcakes, and trying new recipes gave me something positive to focus on and a way to calm my thoughts. It became a space where I could slow down and express my creativity. Over time, what started as comfort turned into confidence, and in 2023 I started my own business, Bakers Box Bakery. As my interest grew, I enrolled in the culinary arts program at my high school to strengthen my skills and learn more about food as both an art and a business. That experience helped me improve my technique and understanding of what it takes to grow a business from the ground up. My first customers were mainly family and friends, but slowly my business began to grow. I started receiving orders for birthday parties, staff events, bake sales, and eventually a wedding. The wedding became a turning point for me. My gymnastics coach believed in me enough to give me the opportunity to bake for her wedding and that moment showed me how far my passion could go when someone believes in you. While baking is my creative outlet, nursing is my career path. This fall, I will be a sophomore at La Salle University studying nursing with the goal of becoming a Travel Pediatric Nurse Practitioner. I chose nursing because I have always been drawn to working with children and science. Nursing is how I want to care for others, while baking is how I learned to care for myself. I want to be someone who helps children stay healthy, supports families during difficult times, and makes healthcare feel less scary for children and their families. Baking and nursing may seem different, but they both come from the same place in me. Nursing is how I will serve and care for others, and baking is where I find peace, creativity, and balance. Both have shaped who I am in different ways, and I plan to carry both with me as I grow. This scholarship would help me continue building my education in nursing while also supporting the growth of my bakery. It would bring me closer to achieving my goal of becoming a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner who not only cares for patients but understands the importance of patience, advocacy and brings creativity and resilience in everything I do. While baking will always be a meaningful part of my life, nursing is the path that I have chosen to dedicate myself to and build my future around. Someone once took a chance on me when they trusted me to bake for their wedding, and that opportunity changed the direction of my business. I hope this scholarship can be another one of those moments that helps me continue building my future in nursing, allowing me to make a positive impact in the lives of others.

My name is Sydnee Hayes, and I will be a sophomore at La Salle University this fall studying nursing. My goal is to become a Travel Pediatric Nurse Practitioner. Earning a higher education will give me the knowledge, experience, and hands-on skills I need to reach that goal. It's preparing me to make a difference in the lives of children and families wherever my career takes me. Higher education is helping me turn my passion for working with children into a career where I can make a lasting impact on their lives. Helping children has always been a passion of mine. For three years, I taught gymnastics to kids, and I loved watching them grow more confident as they learned new skills. That experience showed me how important patience, encouragement, and kindness are when working with children. These are qualities I will carry with me into my nursing career. These experiences showed me that I don’t just want to work with children, but I want to care for and make a lasting impact on their lives. As a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner, I want to help children stay healthy through early screenings, routine checkups, vaccinations, and education. Early detection can make a big difference in a child's life and can prevent health problems from becoming serious problems later. I want to help children and their families feel comfortable during what can be a scary experience. I know I won't be able to fix every illness, but I can be someone who listens, shows compassion, and helps families feel supported when they need it most. College will give me the education and experience, but life has helped me develop the compassion to be that kind of nurse. Watching my mother live with multiple sclerosis (MS) has also shaped the future I want to build. MS is a chronic disease that affects the brain and spinal cord, and growing up, I saw how unpredictable it could be. Some days were better than others, but she never gives up. Her strength inspires me to look beyond caring for patients and look towards research that could improve lives. One day, I hope to contribute to research focused on myelin regeneration, the process of repairing the protective covering around nerve fibers that MS damages. Current treatments can slow the disease, but they cannot repair the damage that has been done. I hope to work alongside researchers exploring stem cell therapies, molecular medicine, and other emerging technologies that could help the body heal itself. Even as a nurse, I believe I can bring an important perspective by making sure patients and their families remain at the center of every new discovery. Obtaining a higher education will make all my goals possible. Every class I take, and every experience helps me gain the skills I need to care for patients with confidence. It also teaches me how to think critically, solve problems, and continue learning throughout my career. I know there will be challenges along the way, but each one will help me grow into the nurse and advocate I hope to become. I know I am only at the beginning of my journey, but I have a clear vision for the future. I want to provide compassionate care for children, support families during difficult times, and contribute to research that brings hope to people living with autoimmune diseases. Earning my college degree is the first step toward making that impact, and I am excited to continue my education and training where I can improve the lives of children and families.

I plan on becoming a Travel Pediatric Nurse Practitioner. I love being around the people I care about, and most of the time, those people happen to be kids. My passion for science and healthcare was developed through my family experiences and medical challenges that have affected the people closest to me. My family background is a little different from others. Growing up, I learned that my cousin, who is only two days younger than me, has full-blown sickle cell anemia. At first, I did not know much about the disease, but I learned that both parents must be carriers for a child to be born with sickle cell anemia. This intrigued me and wanted to learn more especially after watching my cousin go through hospital visits and treatments. This opened my eyes to the challenges many families face when dealing with chronic illnesses. When we were six years old, my cousin, his brothers, and my aunt moved to Virginia for his health. During that time, his hospital visits decreased significantly, and years later he received a bone marrow transplant in Nashville, Tennessee. The recovery process was long, rewarding but hard on my family. Recovery is not just for the patient, it’s also for the family. Watching him overcome obstacles and his quality of life improve showed me the importance of quality healthcare and dedicated medical professionals. Although watching my cousin's journey was difficult, an even more personal experience shaped my desire to pursue healthcare. My mom was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) when I was 13 years old. My mom is my sounding board, so the thought of something happening to her was incredibly scary. I remember when she sat my brother and me down on the couch and explained her diagnosis and the next steps in her treatment journey. MS is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks the body. In the weeks following her diagnosis, doctors frequently visited our home to discuss treatment options. I remember peeking into the living room, worried and confused about what was happening. My mom encouraged me to sit and listen because she knew I was concerned. While the conversations were overwhelming, it also brought me comfort. Seeing healthcare professionals take the time to explain her options and support our family reassured me that my mom was going to be okay. That experience changed my perspective on healthcare. I realized that healthcare professionals do so much more than treat illnesses they provide comfort, support, and hope for patients and their families during difficult times. Watching my cousin and my mom navigate their medical journeys inspired me to pursue a career where I can provide that same level of care and reassurance to others. My family is my motivation and the reason I chose healthcare. I want to help patients and families feel the same comfort and support that healthcare professionals provided to me during one of the most challenging moments of my life. As a woman entering the healthcare field, I hope to make a positive impact by being a nurse who truly listens to her patients. I want to be someone who treats people with compassion, respect, and understanding. I am pursuing this career because I genuinely love helping others, not because of the financial rewards. My personal experiences have shaped who I am and taught me the value of empathy, advocacy, and patient-centered care. I hope to be part of a positive change in healthcare while continuing to support and empower future generations of women in the profession.

SMART, YIELDING, DRIVEN, NURTURING, ENCOURAGING, EMPOWERED. These words describe me at my core. I am the oldest child in my family and have paved the way for my younger brother. It is just the two of us, and we are best friends, confidants, competitors, and, most of all, family. From an early age, I embraced responsibility, knowing he was watching me, and I wanted to be someone he could look up to. I believe I was born athletic. I ran before I walked and climbed before I talked. I was more interested in being active than being social. My mom, concerned about my social development, asked my pediatrician if this was normal. She was assured that some children develop physically before verbally. This set the tone for my life. At two years old, I started gymnastics, and by four, I entered the competitive world. Gymnastics was my passion, my center which built my foundation. I learned resilience, self-control, and how to navigate sadness, disappointment, and setbacks. Gymnastics taught me to trust myself, listen to my instincts, and ask questions. Competing in gymnastics came with its challenges. There were not many Black girls in the sport, and even fewer who were muscular and curvy but here I stood with an ability to compete with the best of them. I was successful in my own right and earned my reputation and level of placement each year. I learned that not all standards are the same, they vary depending on who you are or how you are perceived. Fairness is not equal to everyone. The lessons I learned from gymnastics inspire my aspirations and desires. I love working with children, especially those who feel unheard and unseen as I had. As a gymnastic coach my passion was to develop, nurture, encourage and support the athlete mentally and physically. I am a freshman attending La Salle University, pursuing a degree in nursing to become a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner. This will allow me to fulfill my passion to lead with compassion, advocate for others, and be a voice for those unheard and unseen. My journey has been a road of resilience, breaking barriers and family support, which motivates me to continue working towards my goal. I am SMART in how I pursue my education, YIELDING when life requires flexibility, DRIVEN to achieve my goals, NURTURING to those in my care, ENCOURAGING to my peers, and EMPOWERED by the challenges I have already overcome. These qualities, born from my background and experiences, will continue to shape me as I grow in my career.

Growing up in gymnastics for over 16 years, I learned how to be both tough and graceful. Gymnastics isn’t just a sport it’s a mental and physical battleground. Every time I walked into the gym, I was expected to flip, twist, and land with precision, all while maintaining perfect form and composure. What people don’t often see is the pressure that comes with it, especially as a girl constantly fighting through fear, self-doubt, body image and the expectation to be perfect. Throughout my gymnastics journey, I faced fears, injuries and setbacks. I’ve trained through pain, competed when I was mentally drained, and pushed myself beyond what I thought was possible. These moments didn’t break me, they built me. They taught me that strength doesn’t always look like muscles or medals. Sometimes, strength is walking into practice the day after a fall and attempting the skill again. It’s holding your head high when you didn’t perform your best. The mental strength, the kind that keeps you going despite the pressures has made me into the confident young lady I am today. As an athlete and a high school student I practiced 40 hours a week, went to school 7 hours a day, and worked 3 hours a week. With those time constraints I still made time to get my homework done, hang out with my friends, and give back to my community any chance I was given. Being an athlete is something I take pride in and will never take advantage of. Every day I made hard choices staying up late to finish a school assignment or getting to practice early to perfect a skill. My dedication to gymnastics taught me the importance of time management, responsibilities and sacrifice. Although gymnastics has instilled perseverance, mental and physical strength in me, my mom is the reason I keep pushing. I’m lucky to have grown up with a strong female role model. My mom is the perfect example of grace under pressure. She juggles being a full-time mom of 2, full time supervisor and a part time employee. My mom works two jobs sacrificing her time for my dreams without ever letting me feel like I was a burden. My dad showed me the importance of hard work, but watching my mom carry the emotional and mental load of our family taught me what it means to be a strong woman. In a world where women are often underestimated, I’ve learned to own my power. Gymnastics showed me that the mental strength required of female athletes is often unmatched. We are expected to smile through the pain and still deliver perfection. That expectation has prepared me to stand firm in male-dominated spaces in leadership and my future career choice in medicine and or advocating for myself and others. As I prepare to study nursing with the goal of becoming a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner, I know I’m ready. I’ll bring with me everything I’ve learned the discipline of an athlete, the balance of a student-worker, and the resilience of a strong Black woman. I’m not just entering the next chapter of my life with big dreams, I’m stepping into it with confidence, courage, and the belief that there is no space I don’t belong in. I am ready to take a seat at the table!

Cheerleader by day, gymnast by heart, future pediatric nurse practitioner by purpose. If you ever meet me, you’ll see I’m someone who believes in the power of effort, faith, and knowing your “why.” I’m the girl who encourages everyone before my warmup and high-fives a friend for passing a test, conquering a fear, or landing a big skill. My “why” has always been to uplift others to make sure they feel seen, heard, and understood, just as I’ve needed that same encouragement. I’ve always had a passion for kids, and working as a coach showed me how much kids need comfort, strength, and someone to believe in them. For 16 years, gymnastics was my world. It taught me discipline, how to land on my feet literally and figuratively and how to show up even when things got hard and I didn’t feel seen or supported. I learned how to push through mental blocks and bet on myself. There were moments when my body was capable, but my mind wasn’t. I learned to not let fear become a roadblock and to fight for what I knew I could do, even when no one else believed. Showing up for myself, everyday helped me turn doubt into confidence. Even when I lacked support from coaches, I had the encouragement of my mom and teammates. I never stopped showing up and achieved the highest level in my sport competing as a Level 10 USA gymnast. Now, I’m fulfilling another dream: becoming a collegiate athlete. I’ll be a member of the inaugural Acro and Tumbling team at La Salle University. Achieving this goal taught me to never give up and how to fight quietly. It also gave me the empathy I carry today, especially for kids dealing with fear, pressure, or pain they don’t know how to explain. I’ve turned that empathy into purpose. I’ll be studying biochemistry and nursing at La Salle on both academic and athletic scholarships. My goal is to become a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner who leads with care and compassion. I want to be the calm in someone’s storm. Whether I’m administering medicine or offering a smile to a scared child, I’ll show up fully just like I did as a gymnast. Beyond my career path, I’m passionate about being a light for others. I live by affirmations my mom installed in me: “You are enough,” “Impress yourself before anyone else,” and “Speak up for yourself.” I carry those words with me and share them with others who need reminders of their strength. I’ve faced doubt. I’ve felt pressure. I’ve worked through mental blocks and setbacks. But every time, I chose to rise. That’s who I am: resilient, joyful, driven by service, and forever fueled by my “why.” So here I am cheerleader, gymnast, future pediatric nurse practitioner, believer in kindness, and proof that obstacles don’t define you. How you grow through them does.

Islanders please get ready for tonight’s game FAMILY TIES #familyknowsbest #yourchoice Each couple will get text from their families telling them what the public thinks and what they think. There families will give reasons they love the couple your in and reasons they don’t like the couple your in. Islanders will then decide whether they want to stay in there current couple or recouple with someone new! Text: Hi Islander we miss you so much! The public absolutely loves you but we don’t love the couple your in we feel you should couple up with this Islander. - You guys communicate well but your communication is also surfaced. Text: Hi Islander we love you! The public doesn’t see you in the best light but we love the couple you’re in. - You guys laugh together and enjoy each others company but your partner has a wandering eye and you need someone that will be faithful to you. Just based off of this information the couples must then decide whether they would like to stay in the couple they are in or if they would like to recouple with someone else. If they choose to stay in there couple then they will remain a couple. If they choose to recouple if the islander you want to recouple with also wants to recouple with you after there turn then you will be a couple but if they do not then that islander will be single and vulnerable. In the end all single islanders will be vulnerable and it will be up to the public to decide who should stay or be dumped from the island.