In the first grade I met my first true friend. It was the first time i could call someone my best friend, the person I could spend all of my time with. When I made this new friend I would have never thought I would be making a lifelong friendship. Claire taught me a lot of things and still does. I learned how to be a good friend and be there for someone when they need you. Claire lost her dad in a fire the first year I met her. It made me have a different perspective on life. I was only seven years old trying to grasp the concept of why another girl had to live without her father. That’s when I learned life was not fair and bad things can happen in life.




Entering high school I knew I needed to find the one thing I wanted to be involved in. I was not a big sports player and living in a town that focused on sports I needed to find my niche. I tried out for the cheerleading squad at the end of my eighth grade year and made the varsity cheer squad as a freshman. I instantly connected with the squad and they became my best friends. Spending every Friday and Saturday night together made us close on a level others could not understand. I still look back on cheerleading and see all the lessons I learned and how it sculpted me into the girl I am today.



At the end of my sophomore year I decided I wanted to have a career in the health field. Since I thought I was mature and all I signed up to take a certified nursing class through Methodist hospital in Omaha. I thoroughly enjoyed the class and within eight weeks was officially a Certified Nursing assistant. I then received my first job as a CNA in an assisted living called Silver Ridge. I was placed to work in the memory unit, with patients who were diagnosed Alzheimer’s and dementia. Working there I found myself learning every day from the residents around me. I learned to understand different personalities and discovered patients I didn’t know I had.