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Gavin Arneson's Argumentative Essay

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When the coroner snapped his notebook shut and told Gavin Arneson that his father was dead, the teenager's tenuous family life took one more erratic twist. Arneson, who had just turned 18, was facing a shaky adulthood and another stint of homelessness. "He said something like 'Well, I'm sorry for your loss,' and that was about it," says the slightly built high school senior. "I think if I was 17, he would have tried to set me up with something or someone to make sure I had a home. But in this case, I was 18 and on my own." Arneson has risen above these and other adversities to gain national praise not only for his perseverance but his intellect. He recently received a four-year, full-tuition scholarship to study nursing at New York University and was awarded the National Honor Society's annual …show more content…

Arneson and his brother learned to be resourceful while growing up living with either their mom or their dad, both alcoholics and struggling with their own demons, he says. But he soon learned he wasn't alone in Evergreen. The Clear Creek High School community wrapped him in its arms, providing strength and support as he continued his stubborn pursuit of an education. "I honestly don't think I could have done this without the teachers and everyone else here," Arneson says. "They kept me on track and told me to keep pursuing that goal." That doggedness is revealed in many ways. Arneson is the Class of 2017's valedictorian and president of Clear Creek's student council and honor society. He started the first Colorado high school chapter of She's the First, a nonprofit that provides scholarships to girls in low-income countries. He's worked at least two jobs a week since freshman year and supported his dad, who was jobless, blind and fighting diabetes. His dad's health had begun failing before the December day Arneson found his body in their two-bedroom Lakewood

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