My name is Zion Pyner, I am a freshman at Coppin State University, and I am from New Jersey. Mental illness has been a part of my life as long as I can remember. I was first diagnosed with depression when I was 13, but I knew deep down inside I had depression before I entered my teenage years, a milestone where hormones start to change, and a child can experience a different side of life. Throughout my childhood and growing into a teenager, I was learning how to function with being irritable all the time, and a constant wave of sadness and feeling alone. Transitioning into a teenager, I was used to the feelings I was experiencing and acted on them multiple times, including my first suicide attempt, which was in the fifth grade. While these experiences are painful to remember, they have shaped me into the person I am today. Growing up with depression has shown me at an early age that mental illness is not temporary, but it can last forever. It's something that requires constant understanding and support- like a light bulb. When a light bulb runs out, you have to make sure it's okay so it can shine bright again. The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted my mental health journey. I remember repeating the same cycle every day. Wake up, go online for my classes, and go back to sleep. Sometimes I would fall asleep during the meeting prior to staying up the night before, crying myself to sleep. The cycle was depressing to the point where I was falling behind in my classes, and my grades started to slip. The memory that will stick with me forever is the day I overdosed on my antidepressants and was admitted to the hospital. I remember the journey from my admission to graduating from the outpatient program as if it were yesterday. Mental illness has not affected indidvidually but has impacted my family throughout the years as well. One of my significant losses in my life was a family member who lost their battle with depression, my cousin, Calvin. Seeing how my family reacted to his death really made me sit back and realize that one day, that could've been me. Grieving while managing my own depression was hard, but it helped me believe in how much mental health matters at every age and gender. Despite my significant challenges, I have remained committed to helping others and continue my education. My passion is working with children, specifically working with those who are affected by trauma, neglect, or other circumstances in the family court system. Struggling from a young age, I understand how impactful it can be when children feel unheard. Through a career in criminal justice, I hope to bring compassion, justice, and support to a child in need. Surviving depression, loss, suicidal attempts, and the isolation of a global pandemic has taught me that I am here for a reason. No matter how much I go through, I am here to leave a mark on the people I encounter. Just like that light bulb, I'm still shining bright.

My experience with mental health has shaped my goals, relationships, and understanding of the world by showing me that I’m on this earth for a reason and a temporary problem can be fixed without having to do something permanently. A time I had faced adversity was when going through my eating disorder and also having to quarantine in 2020. Going into COVID, I couldn't fit my clothes anymore. Before we had to quarantine I was already going through things with my maternal grandmother where she used to bring me down about my weight and caused myself to starve myself occasionally. I started at 150 at the end of 2019 and around March 2020 I was 110. I also struggled with my depression and thought about how life would be better if I wasn't here. Unfortunately, I acted on those thoughts. I was put in the mental hospital for about two months (March and April 2021). I was also put into an eating disorder program where they would help me make good choices on food. I was in multiple programs starting from the end of my 8th grade year to the end of the summer of 2021. With this being said, the way I overcame my adversity was by the support of my family as well as my community. Being in the programs and the mental hospital has taught me a lot in life. To cherish my presence on Earth and don’t try to take your own life because of something small and can be fixed. Temporary problems are not a reason to make permanent decisions. Even after I graduated high school I have learned to love my body more and more each day because at some point I was unhealthy and sick. Looking back on my experiences I plan to help people who are struggling with mental health as well. London Deshields was a incoming sophomore in my neighborhood and my brother knew her, she was his friend. She tragically took her life a day before school started in September of 2024. Reflecting on her presence being gone and how many people came out to her vigil in front of her house, really hit home for me. This has reflected on me because I was too in a situation where I tried to take my life multiple times. London is my motivation to keep helping people and reduce the factor of suicidal rates increasing. My daily reminder to people is to reach out. If you guys aren’t friends anymore or just don’t talk at all. Someone might need to talk someone and you can help save a life.

"Just what makes that little old ant think he'll move that rubber tree plant". High Hopes by Frank Sinatra was the song my great-grandmother sang to me when I couldn't believe in myself. As a seven-year-old girl, being in the court system was confusing, and hard to figure out what was going on. The court system failed me every time. It was custody rights with my maternal grandmother and mother. Every year it was them arguing about visitation rights and who I should live with. I was scared and alone. A little girl stuck in the middle. Dealing with this since her birth. The lawyers who were there supported me through my journey. Still, the court system failed me. Multiple pieces of evidence showed that I wasn't safe but it wasn't enough proof. Something needed to be done sooner or later. Growing up in the city of Camden, there was always violence. Innocent bystanders being shot and killed, children having to be forced to live with parents who couldn't take care of them, any situation you name it. In the fourth grade, around Black History Month I should say. The teacher assigned us a project that changed my life moving forward. The project was about picking an African-American who changed the world today. My person was Thurgood Marshall. Thurgood Marshall was a civil rights lawyer and the first African-American jurist who served as an Associate on the Supreme Court. As a child who had multiple experiences in the court system hearing about this gentleman made me interested in him. Going back and forth to the courthouse made me realize that African Americans weren't represented enough in the criminal justice career path. After reading and researching about Marshall my interest in him started to grow. Freshman year of high school, I could see my future ahead of me. Putting in endless amounts of effort, and sleepless nights I made it into the major I wanted since elementary school. Criminal Justice. I made it into the major with a one hundred, the highest grade of all exploratories. I was the only African American female who made it into the major for the class of 2025. Today I am the only African American female in my class. As the years went by, I earned multiple certifications to go with my major. I am in the Honor Guard for the Criminal Justice major as well. Currently, I am also working towards my Associate's Degree with earning college credits for criminal justice. My future goal is to become a Judge who practices Family Law. I know I would have to become a lawyer first to become a judge. I would also need to pass the LSAT and complete Law school to become a lawyer. This scholarship could help me go above and beyond with my future goals. With this scholarship, I could use the money to pay for my books and anything else that needs to be paid for school. It could also help me with any financial problems within my years of college experience. If I were to be awarded this scholarship I could achieve my dreams. I could achieve my dreams of becoming a Judge and helping children who went through the same experiences and situations as me. Helping children in the adoption, foster care, and child protective services facilities. Showing children that someone cares about them and they are willing to save their lives. This scholarship could truly be a blessing to me. I would love to pursue my future goals in the criminal justice major.

I have decided to pursue an education in criminal justice because I feel like the criminal justice community needs more workers, especially with the situations they've been put through in these recent years. I am also a child of the family court system so being involved with judges, child protective services, and others in the criminal justice made me what to be a part of the criminal justice community. Since childhood, I have been back and forth to court due to guardianship proceedings between my maternal grandmother, mother, and sometimes my paternal grandmother. There were times when I was homeless as well. Ultimately, I'd like to become a judge. This will help children in the court system who are just like me with adoption, child protection, foster care, etc., to prevent them from suffering through what I did. With the scholarship, I can pursue my dream of transferring to college and earning my master's degree in criminal justice. I’ve always dreamed of becoming a judge since I was young. When I was in fifth grade I did this black history month project. We had to pick a person and then research them. I decided to pick a random person and chose Thurgood Marshall. Since then, becoming a lawyer/judge has always been my passion. If I win this scholarship, it will officially make my childhood dream come true. I plan to improve and strengthen my community once I graduate by providing homes for at least most of the city of Camden and helping children in the family court system by providing a home and resolving their issues inside their current homes. Another dream of mine has always been to provide homes for the homeless in my hometown, Camden. Since I'm from the city of Camden there are a lot of homeless people that you see in the streets and it's sad. My other dream since the sixth grade is to provide homes for homeless people, at least 70 percent of them. Once I graduate I want to help children in need of a loving home for example child protective service children, children in adoption or foster care homes, and children who live in toxic households as well as children with divorced parents. Children should be treated as a child without having to grow up too fast. The reason why I am saying this is because I was in the same predicament when I was younger and in the family court system. This is exactly why I need to help these children and earn my degree and diploma so I can help them.

Since childhood, I have been back and forth to court due to guardianship proceedings between my maternal grandmother, mother, and sometimes my paternal grandmother. There were times when I was homeless as well. Ultimately, I'd like to become a judge. This will help children in the court system who are just like me with adoption, child protection, foster care, etc., to prevent them from suffering through what I did. With the scholarship, I can pursue my dream of transferring to college and earning my master's degree in criminal justice. I’ve always dreamed of becoming a judge since I was young. When I was in fifth grade I did this black history month project. We had to pick a person and then research them. I decided to pick a random person and chose Thurgood Marshall. Since then, becoming a lawyer/judge has always been my passion. If I win this scholarship, it will officially make my childhood dream come true. I plan to improve and strengthen my community once I graduate by providing homes for at least most of the city of Camden and helping children in the family court system by providing a home and resolving their issues inside their current homes. Another dream of mine has always been to provide homes for the homeless in my hometown, Camden. Since I'm from the city of Camden there are a lot of homeless people that you see in the streets and it's sad. My other dream since the sixth grade is to provide homes for homeless people, at least 70 percent of them. Another thing is that I want to provide every child with a happy, healthy, and loving home where they know they are loved and shouldn't have to worry about anything bad happening. All children should have a happy and loving home. A child shouldn't have to worry about the fact of being homeless or having a moment where they need to step out of a child's place no matter what. A child should have food and water and parents or guardians who try everything in their hearts to protect them from danger in this world. As well as providing homes for children I want to provide homes for teenagers and young adults and as well as fully grown adults. They should be treated the same way as children and be provided with a home of their own instead of living on the streets.