Living with PTSD has shaped not only my personal journey but also my vision for how I want to serve others. Growing up in lineage of generational trauma and military service my father struggled with his mental health, and the grandchild of a man who also carried deep, unspoken wounds, I witnessed the way trauma ripples across generations. My own experience with PTSD has given me a profound empathy for those who suffer in silence and a calling to be part of their healing. These struggles did not defeat me; they refined my purpose. I believe strongly that we can turn pain into purpose, and this conviction has led me to pursue graduate studies at Liberty University, where I will become a Licensed Mental Health Counselor. Liberty’s approach resonates deeply with me, because I see faith, compassion, and evidence-based practice as essential partners in the work of healing. My education here is not simply about earning a degree—it is preparation to serve veterans and families whose lives have been fractured by trauma. Too many veterans return home carrying invisible scars that traditional approaches have not fully healed. While conventional therapy offers important tools, I believe we are on the edge of a new era in mental health treatment. Alongside my studies at Liberty University, I am also pursuing specialized training through the Integrative Psychiatry Institute in the emerging field of psychedelic-assisted therapy. This research, grounded in evidence and practiced with integrity, shows powerful potential for helping veterans with PTSD find breakthroughs where other treatments have fallen short. My goal is to responsibly bring these innovative therapies to Florida, expanding access to care that honors the complexity of trauma and supports the whole person—body, mind, and spirit. My lived experience with PTSD has transformed my relationships and my worldview. I have learned the value of deep listening, patience, and creating safe spaces where others feel seen and understood. I have come to appreciate how healing is not just an individual journey but also a communal and generational one. By addressing trauma at its roots, we have the opportunity to heal families, communities, and even legacies of pain that stretch across generations. This scholarship represents more than financial assistance to me—it represents partnership in a mission. It will allow me to pursue the education and training necessary to bring hope to veterans who have sacrificed so much for our country and to families who have lived in the shadow of trauma for too long. With guidance, my academic preparation at Liberty, and the support of this opportunity, I am committed to becoming a mental health counselor who serves with both skill and compassion, advancing the frontier of healing and honoring those whose battles continue long after war has ended.

Having grown up in a chaotic home, I turned to journaling at a young age as a means of survival. My journal became my confidant—a safe space where I could untangle my pain, fears, and confusion. Over time, this practice became more than survival; it evolved into a tool for self-awareness, growth, and reparenting myself. I pursued a career in the art world, both as an artist and a curator, I found another form of therapy through my creative practice. Yet, despite the fulfillment I found in the art world, I realized that my true passion lay in helping others navigate loss. My pivot from the art world into funeral education may seem unconventional at first glance, but it is deeply connected to my desire to bring healing to others. In working through my own grief and trauma, I came to understand the profound isolation that often accompanies loss and suffering. Too many people feel alone in their pain, unsure of how to move forward. I want to be a guide for those individuals, helping them feel seen, heard, and understood. This drive led me to pursue funeral education, where I could begin to explore the rituals and practices that help people honor loss and begin to heal. Through my studies and work in this field as a funeral director, I discovered a deep interest in bereavement and a desire to become a secular chaplain and grief educator and so I have applied for graduate studies in Thanatology at Marian University to prepare for Pastoral Care Education. As a chaplain, I would offer emotional and spiritual support to those navigating their darkest moments, while as a grief educator, I would empower others with the tools and knowledge to process and express their emotions. Writing, which has always been a lifeline for me, would play a central role in this work. Writing allows us to tell stories that might otherwise remain buried. By sharing my experiences and insights, I hope to create a space where others can see their own struggles reflected and feel less alone. Grief is universal, yet profoundly personal, and writing about it offers a way to bridge that divide. It can validate the messy, nonlinear process of mourning while also illuminating paths toward healing. Whether through essays, workshops, or one-on-one conversations, I want my words to be a source of comfort and guidance for others. Art and journaling taught me that creative expression is a powerful tool for processing trauma. As I further my education in bereavement studies, I aim to incorporate writing and creativity into my approach as a chaplain and grief educator. My goal is to help others find their own voices and discover the healing power of self-expression. By creating safe spaces for people to share their stories—whether through writing, art, or dialogue—I hope to foster community and connection, both of which are essential to healing. The decision to further my education stems from my belief that I still have so much to learn about the complexities of grief and trauma. While my personal experiences and creative background provide a strong foundation, I want to deepen my understanding through formal study. Learning about the psychological, cultural, and spiritual dimensions of grief will equip me to better support others. Additionally, I believe that becoming a chaplain and educator requires not only knowledge but also an ongoing commitment to personal growth, empathy, and humility—qualities I strive to cultivate every day. Writing saved me, and now I want to use it to help others find their way back to hope, healing, and wholeness.

Success, for me, is the ability to transform pain into beauty, to take life’s most challenging moments and create something meaningful from them. It is not solely defined by conventional achievements but by the depth of connection I can forge between my experiences and the emotions they evoke in others. Success means using my art to bridge gratitude and joy with the inevitable pain of loss, creating a space where grief is not just endured but understood and appreciated for its ability to shape us. Growing up in a chaotic home life family, I faced challenges that tested my resilience. Financial instability often overshadowed my aspirations, and mental health struggles of my father made the path forward feel uncertain. Despite these obstacles, I pursued my passion for understanding human history and creativity by studying fine art at the University of Florida. For me, fine art was not just a discipline but a lens through which I could explore the arc of human history, examining how individuals and societies express themselves in the face of triumph and despair. The privilege of studying fine art became a transformative experience, teaching me that even in adversity, we can create something that endures. However, life’s demands necessitated a change in direction. With the weight of financial pressures and the need for stability, I transitioned to a vocational program in mortuary science. This decision was pragmatic, yet it carried profound emotional resonance. Working in this field allowed me to confront loss directly and intimately, deepening my understanding of human fragility and resilience. This career not only provided the means to support myself but also illuminated the profound relationship between grief and gratitude. Witnessing how families navigate loss reinforced my belief that art has the power to articulate what words often cannot and the funeral I organized were deeply informed by art historical research in Victorian rituals around death rites and traditions. While this path provided stability, my passion for creating art never waned. I envision returning to pursue my MFA at Bard College, a goal that represents more than academic achievement—it symbolizes the culmination of my journey and my commitment to transmuting pain into beauty. At Bard, I hope to explore the intricate connections between joy, gratitude, and loss, using my personal experiences and professional insights to create art that speaks to the universal yet deeply individual experience of grief. Ive purchased a cargo van I plan to be their centerpiece of a community death care and grief education and want to develop a grief gift shop to spread death literacy, program film screenings, and highlight the intersection of psychological and art. The opportunity to study at Bard College will be instrumental in helping me achieve this vision. The MFA program is designed for working individuals and is one of the most prestigious programs in the nation with its low impact summer residencies. Its environment, which fosters innovation and introspection, will provide the tools and community necessary to refine my artistic practice. I aim to develop work that not only communicates but also heals, offering viewers a space to reflect, mourn, and ultimately find solace. Death is the measure of everything, and education around having a "good death" are the ultimate measure of success in this world. To me, success is not about erasing the hardships I’ve faced but about integrating them how we tell the story of our lives. It is about showing that even the most painful experiences can give rise to moments of profound beauty and connection. By returning to my roots in fine art and building on the lessons learned from my time in mortuary science, I hope to develop new ideas around legacy projects, reimagine new models of ceremonies, work on essays for publications that resonates with people on a deeply emotional level. Success will be realized when my art practice helps others navigate their own losses as grief coach and offering them the possibility of new paradigms-- new ideas around what the measure of a success life lived is.

As a funeral director and end-of-life doula, I have dedicated my career to supporting individuals and families during some of their most vulnerable moments. These roles have given me a profound appreciation for the importance of grief literacy and meaningful, compassionate palliative care during the dying process and after a death. My experiences have shown me that our culture often lacks the tools and understanding needed to navigate grief, leaving many feeling isolated and unsupported. This realization has inspired my desire to pursue graduate studies in Thanatology to deepen my ability to guide others through these experiences and to advocate for a more death-positive society. My future studies in thanatology—a field dedicated to understanding death, dying, and bereavement—will equip me with essential grief literacy skills. This knowledge has deepened my ability to support individuals dealing with profound loss. I actively educate others about the complexities of grief, normalizing the varied ways people mourn. By advocating for a death-positive society, I aim to shift cultural attitudes that often silence discussions about mortality, helping individuals embrace the reality of loss as a natural part of life. As I pursue a career as a funeral director and grief coach, my mission is to provide both practical and emotional support during life’s most challenging moments. In my role as a funeral director, I will assist families in honoring their loved ones with meaningful rituals while creating an environment of compassion and understanding. Recognizing that grief does not end with a ceremony, I plan to extend my support as a grief coach, offering ongoing guidance and coping strategies tailored to each individual’s needs. America’s relationship with death is often shaped by fear, avoidance, and generational attitudes that are rapidly changing. This cultural discomfort creates barriers to open conversations about death, dying, and grief. I aim to help dismantle these barriers by promoting death literacy—equipping individuals and communities with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to engage with end-of-life experiences in a healthy and empowering way. Through studying Thanatology, I hope to expand my expertise in grief processes, cultural attitudes toward death, and holistic approaches to bereavement support. I hope to work on film festivals, content creation (www.callinghours.co), modernizing death rites and ceremonies, and pop-up shops that normalize conversation around planning long before the end. Additionally, I envision myself working as a community death care advocate and a non-traditional humanist chaplain in hospice settings. In these roles, I can foster inclusive, personalized end-of-life care that honors diverse beliefs, identities, and life experiences. By integrating my work as a funeral director and end-of-life doula with advanced knowledge in Thanatology, I will be better equipped to support those experiencing grief and guide them toward healing. Through this graduate program, I hope to contribute to the growing death-positive movement, encouraging individuals and communities to embrace death as a natural and meaningful part of life. Together, we can create a culture where grief is met with compassion, end-of-life care is inclusive and empowering, and the legacy of those who have passed is preserved with dignity and love.

Throughout my journey, I have passionately supported others in navigating their mental health challenges, particularly in areas of grief and loss. Whether through active listening, offering compassionate guidance, or creating safe spaces for individuals to share their stories, I have sought to empower people to confront their emotional pain with courage and resilience. Recognizing that grief is often misunderstood, I have worked to promote open, stigma-free conversations around loss. By fostering a sense of connection and understanding, I help others process their emotions and find meaning amidst their struggles. My graduate application in thanatology—a field dedicated to understanding death, dying, and bereavement—will equip me with essential grief literacy skills. This knowledge has deepened my ability to support individuals dealing with profound loss. I actively educate others about the complexities of grief, normalizing the varied ways people mourn. By advocating for a death-positive society, I aim to shift cultural attitudes that often silence discussions about mortality, helping individuals embrace the reality of loss as a natural part of life. As a funeral director and grief coach, my mission is to provide both practical and emotional support during life's most challenging moments. In my role as a funeral director, I will assist families in honoring their loved ones with meaningful rituals while creating an environment of compassion and understanding. Recognizing that grief does not end with a ceremony, I plan to extend my support as a grief coach, offering ongoing guidance and coping strategies tailored to each individual's needs. By blending my expertise in thanatology with my work as a funeral director, I aspire to serve as a beacon of hope and healing for those I encounter. Through workshops, one-on-one coaching, and community outreach, I aim to build grief-literate communities where people feel empowered to express their emotions and support one another.