I Am A Safe Haven At Your Hands

I started walking to the church and there came my friend Dwane Loewen. Which I know to this day as my best friend who has been standing with me all this time to 2015. It wasn't soon after that I was being in that youth group. My Friend Dwane heard about the fact there was a youth church in Kamloops that had services going on called IGNITE. So he checked with my friends and their families. So he got confimation from them and we started going into Kamloops on Wednesdays. It for sure started changing my life and in awhile I started feeling more loved and that I had a purpose for my life. I met some key people that later turned to have great affects to my life. I met Andy Kravitz he ended up helping me with other musicians to practice playing in a band. I also met a guy named J.J who gave me a base foundation for drumming he taught me for almost a year. I also ended up meeting a guy named Huey who taught me drum lessons for a few months. These people are people that gave me my foundation to my life in making me who I am today. Shortly after in 2007 my Mom passed away it felt so unreal to me at first. I was quite shook up of

I’ve had many moments that I didn’t know would change my life, but they ended up impacting me in a big way. One moment was when I applied for kindergarten at my old school. I was only three, so I had no idea how important that time would be. I ended up on the waiting list, but I got in. That school had a huge influence on me. I loved going there. I made many friends that I will have forever, and I learned so much. I had no idea that school would mean so much to me, but looking back on it, it was a huge part of my childhood. Another time was when I interviewed to get into Park. Being accepted to Park and choosing to go to this school took me on a completely different path than if I had gone somewhere else. Right now, I’m in the process of applying to high schools. I don’t know what will happen, but one moment can change everything. In the future I’m also going to have to apply to colleges. There are also other moments that changed my life. An example is when my mom signed me up for gymnastics. I didn’t know I would like it so much, but now I love it. This has had an impact on my identity and the the schools I’ve attended have too. I’m still young, so I’m going to have many times that will change my life and identity in the

During the week in Chicago, I grew closer to God, learned how to be a better leader, and learned to put others before myself, which is what helped me become a better person. Serving others that had situations worse than I could imagine was life changing. The idea I could make such a tremendous change in someone’s life while doing activities I enjoyed, opened my eyes to the potentials of serving. After the week ended and I returned home, I wanted to do more for the people around me who were less fortunate. Going into freshman year, I made the decision to volunteer at Urban Vision. I help kids who have newly immigrated to Akron and the United States find items at a holiday shop for their families and themselves. Many of these kids went directly to the necessity aisle, (i.e. toilet paper, laundry detergent, and soaps) to get these items for their families, even though there were plenty of toys for the kids themselves. These kids helped me realize I should be grateful for everything in life, from shelter over my head to the clothes on my

I wanted to do well in college. I didn't have to ride trains or worry about the violence, but more about reaching my goals. On the first day of class, the campus was full of people, all travelling in different ways all with the same ideal destination in place, class. Unsure of where to go or even the name of my building, I was lost. As I searched for my class, the campus seemed confusing and huge. I looked around with a nervous expression plastered on my face and I sat on a bench near my dorm. I felt defeated by life. I kept second guessing college entirely, when a familiar face appeared. It was a girl from my hall who I bonded with since we had the same class. She said “If you are lost, you can just walk with me” and we took off. Her small gesture made me on time for class and saved me from an emotional breakdown. As I look around campus today and notice people who seem lost, I offer them directions and even shortcuts on how to get there. The feeling of being lost and unsure brings failure to my heart. Doing small kind gestures for strangers could change their entire day, which brings me priceless joy.

Some of my favorite memories made in high school thus far are due to my involvement in the Best Buddies program. Best Buddies is offered across the United States and is a non-profit organization dedicated to ending the exclusion of people with special needs. I joined the program my freshman year and was selected my junior year of high school to be in the Best Buddies class where I get to develop a closer relationship with all of the buddies. In total there are about twenty-five special needs kids that attend my school. I am proud to attend a school that welcomes these kids and always makes sure to include them in major school events and extracurricular activities. Recently, Tyler, one of the buddies, scored a touchdown while playing with our varsity football team. This was a proud moment for the Best Buddies class because we wanted him to have this amazing experience.

Over the years I have encountered many road blocks, none of which I hadn’t been able to overcome. My freshman year I had been cut from the volleyball team after working so hard over the summer to improve my skills. I admit, I felt extremely put down by this turn of events but if that had never happened, I wouldn’t have found the sport I love more, cross country. On top of that, I received and application for National Honors Society last year, and I was ecstatic. However, when I didn’t quite make it in, there was a determination in me to find a way to better improve the skills required to qualify to be a part of this amazing group of people. Those events shaped my character deeply. I also had the amazing opportunity to go on a mission trip to

During this even I learned that without organizations like Give 365 the community wouldn’t function in the way it does. This organization gives children in the community a safe place to spend their time. In class we have learned that getting involved in campus is very important, the event I attended did just that it got me involved, I met new people, and I gave back to the community. This event relates to my “why” because my parents have always encouraged me to be a better person and strive to succeed in life, attending the Community Plunge helped me do just that. Attending the Community Plunge was not out of the ordinary for me I love volunteering and getting the satisfaction of helping others. Outside of class I have been involved in many service projects at home including; mission trips, attending food drives, and volunteering at homeless shelters. Being involved in Community Plunge and volunteering at Give 365 will greatly impact my college experience because of these events I will continue to volunteer on campus and in the community. I will use what I learned in the future by continuing to volunteer and encourage others to as

I saw kids of all ages living with a burden pinned to their backs. However, they did not show it. They were just like me, a normal kid. Yet everyday they had to live in a sort of jail. Following a strict schedule when to eat, play, sleep, and go to school. They couldn’t hop in the car with their mom and go to the mall. The things I take for granted were what they were praying for. While here my fellow life teen members and I came together as a sort of beacon of light to play with and be a friend to these kids. We all came together to achieve a common goal and help those in need. This experience really hit home with me as I underappreciate all the little things in life that I should be grateful for. Trying to live a selfless life can be hard, but I will continue to help my community and those in need throughout my

Last year, I was struck by an epiphany about how to react to the troubles of life because of a simple cheer competition in Dallas. At the time however, it was not just a "simple competition." Placing first in the Dallas Spirit Festival was imperative to not only me, but also my team. It was so important to us we practiced for hours on end, day in and day out to ensure our routine was perfect. Going into the competition, we were all very nervous but by the end of this experience I was able to discover something I never realized before; something that would change my outlook on life forever.

I have had a pretty painless life, compared to most people. The only struggles I have had up to this point have been difficult tests, or getting cut from a team. This summer, however I experienced the most humbling moment of my life. One night in the second week of summer, I was at my friend’s house playing an intense game of pickup basketball.  The second game of the night began, I checked the ball in not knowing that my life would change for the next 8 months. As I sprinted toward the hoop I felt something that I had never once felt before.

In the fall of 2014 I was presented with the opportunity to go on a missions trip to Zambia. We had a few meetings about this trip and interest grew. Next thing I knew it was March of 2015 and I was headed off to Haiti. Plans had changed but I could never have imagined what great impact this would have on my life.

Help What is safe? Safe is being protected from or not exposed to danger or risk. In the movie Safe Haven directed by Lasse Hallström, will help answer the question what is safe? Safe Haven expresses fear, love, trust, acting, and action.

During my freshman year of highschool, I decided to join a school club called LifeSavers. I knew it was a peer support group focused on problem solving and suicide prevention, but I didn’t really understand the specifics of the club. However, other classmates had said they had enjoyed it and I figured it wouldn’t hurt to have another extracurricular activity during the school year. I didn’t know at the time how much the trip would impact not only my view of myself, but how I view other people and their experiences.

I wouldn’t have met some of the most important people in my life and learned some of the greatest lessons that parents, teachers, or anybody else can’t teach, the values of hard work, friendships, and volunteerism. Even the small lessons mattered to me. I learned how to setup a tent, cook shrimp, and how to create choreography, When I moved to Georgia I didn’t put these lessons in action, there wasn’t a youth center I could visit to meet friends, I was on my own. It took me some time to get back in the groove of things, I didn’t volunteer at all, I didn’t join any clubs, and I barley left my house. I was miserable. But I thought about everything I’ve been through the past 4 years and didn’t want to lose all the life lessons I had accumulated. I started to join clubs and looking for volunteer opportunities. I joined the Chick-Fil-A leadership academy because of their strong focus on servant leadership and found it to be the right club for me. I plan on continuing to use my experiences from Texas while in college to get involved in multiple clubs and volunteer more than I ever have. Nothing will ever replace the memories I’ve created, but I’m ready to start

Have you ever done something new and life changing? Well, in the month of July of this year, I went to Pennsylvania to attend an academic program called John Hopkins Center for Talented Youth, or CTY. It was my first time at a sleepaway camp, and I would be away from home alone for three weeks without any of my family members. I had chosen to go to this camp because a friend of mine recommended it, and it gave the opportunity to learn high-level subjects. The subject I chose to learn was Engineering Design since I want to end up in the engineering field. I thought the camp would allow me to have a good start on the teachings of engineering, but it ended up teaching me much more than just engineering. CTY turned out to be an event that