Furthering my education is important to me, because I believe having an education is the one thing that nobody can ever take away from you. The knowledge that we have learn through personal experience and school makes us unique and is a privilege. I find that a lot of people take having an education and the ability to further their learning for granted, even when there are grown adults in other countries who do not have basic reading comprehension or math skills. I am incredibly blessed to be raised in the United States, where an education is guaranteed, and can be furthered at any point in life. Music has helped me immensely in life, especially when I have gone through rough patches and needed an escape from reality. I find that music can put everything you are dealing with into a simple melody, and after you listen to that melody a few times you start to understand why you are feeling the way you are. I believe that music puts into words everything we cannot physically say, so we do not have to. If I am having a rough day, I can turn on some music that relates to the situation I am in, and I automatically feel better. I notice that this scholarship is given in memory of the homicide of Brittany McGlone and the education and life she had awaiting her. I find that heartbreaking that Brittany's murder remains unsolved and that her family is still lacking closure and justice. My whole life, I have been intrigued by violent crime and have always dreamed to work on these open cases. I truly cannot stand knowing that there are so many cold cases out there involving murders, missing people, and kidnappings. I also cannot stand knowing that there are murderers who get to walk around freely while the families are forever traumatized from their loved one's death. I currently am a senior at Venice High School, who will also be graduating with an associate's degree in criminology from the State College of Florida. I plan to further my education at a Florida University and then go through the police academy. Last year I graduated from the National FBI Youth Leadership Program (0.2% acceptance rate), and I plan to attend the FBI headquarters again in the future for the adult academy. I want to work in the FBI's violent crime department, so I can make sure that justice is served, and the best efforts are given to solve these crimes. God bless the McGlone family and their loss of their daughter Brittany. Thank you for the scholarship opportunity, Tara Merritt