Personal Statement
When I first started high school, I was not on track of my school work like I should've been. I was hanging out with friends and not taking school seriously. During It the second semester of my sophomore year I started to do better in school. That was the year that my family and I found out that my uncle had Pancreatic Cancer. I didn't know how to feel at the moment. He found out that he had stage four pancreatic cancer in May 2014. In fact, June 27,2014 is a day I will never forget - it was the devastating and painful day that the news was shared with me that my uncle, Roderick Armstrong, had passed away. I took that very hard because I never had someone so close to me pass away so instantly. I thought as though life wouldn’t be complete without him, but it changed my outlook on life and the remainder of high school that I had left to complete.
The beginning of my junior year I began to push myself hard to get good grades, and also to make my family proud. I felt as though that was the least I could do to add some joy to my family. My uncle was really big on children going to school, not only going to school but getting good grades while going. He really pushed the idea of us going to college and making sure we constantly were making good grades and making our parents proud. To me and my cousins, he was like another father figure and he always had our best interest. When school started, I would think back to when he would be asking me about grades and I wasn’t super confident about how I was doing. I instantly wanted to make sure that going forward I was doing better for myself when it came to school. I began to take up new study habits that would help me grow by completing my work and making sure that my assignments were done thoroughly and on time.
I found myself completing my assignments on a consistent basis and in a timely manner. The distractions that had led me astray from doing my work before, were no longer impacting my ability to get my work done. The overall impact that my uncle’s death had on my life has shaped me to be who I am today. I’m 17 year old, making great grades, feeling the excitement of graduation, employed, and focused. As I am preparing to graduate and applying for college, I definitely do see these new qualities that I’ve developed being embraced and finding success in them. When it comes to my leadership role at my current school, I take a lot of responsibility in making sure everything is going right especially in relation to events and participation in my senior graduation class. Another improvement that I made was finding a job so that I would be able to learn how to manage my own money before going off to college, as well as to provide for my personal wants. I had applied to many different places and was becoming a bit impatient but I made sure that I kept on striving so that I could attain my first job. I eventually received a call back from this shoe store where I hoped to work and became employed. This was a huge accomplishment for me along with the grades that I was getting.
When I sit and look back at how hurt I was after my uncle passed to where I am humbly at now, I can say that not only am I proud but my family is proud as well of what I have accomplished after such hard times. I feel good knowing that my uncle is looking down on me seeing that I’m still working my hardest.I have made up my mind that I am going to keep it this way because it is a great feeling to know I’m pushing myself to do and achieve what I have always had to potential to do.
When I first started high school, I was not on track of my school work like I should've been. I was hanging out with friends and not taking school seriously. During It the second semester of my sophomore year I started to do better in school. That was the year that my family and I found out that my uncle had Pancreatic Cancer. I didn't know how to feel at the moment. He found out that he had stage four pancreatic cancer in May 2014. In fact, June 27,2014 is a day I will never forget - it was the devastating and painful day that the news was shared with me that my uncle, Roderick Armstrong, had passed away. I took that very hard because I never had someone so close to me pass away so instantly. I thought as though life wouldn’t be complete without him, but it changed my outlook on life and the remainder of high school that I had left to complete.
The beginning of my junior year I began to push myself hard to get good grades, and also to make my family proud. I felt as though that was the least I could do to add some joy to my family. My uncle was really big on children going to school, not only going to school but getting good grades while going. He really pushed the idea of us going to college and making sure we constantly were making good grades and making our parents proud. To me and my cousins, he was like another father figure and he always had our best interest. When school started, I would think back to when he would be asking me about grades and I wasn’t super confident about how I was doing. I instantly wanted to make sure that going forward I was doing better for myself when it came to school. I began to take up new study habits that would help me grow by completing my work and making sure that my assignments were done thoroughly and on time.
I found myself completing my assignments on a consistent basis and in a timely manner. The distractions that had led me astray from doing my work before, were no longer impacting my ability to get my work done. The overall impact that my uncle’s death had on my life has shaped me to be who I am today. I’m 17 year old, making great grades, feeling the excitement of graduation, employed, and focused. As I am preparing to graduate and applying for college, I definitely do see these new qualities that I’ve developed being embraced and finding success in them. When it comes to my leadership role at my current school, I take a lot of responsibility in making sure everything is going right especially in relation to events and participation in my senior graduation class. Another improvement that I made was finding a job so that I would be able to learn how to manage my own money before going off to college, as well as to provide for my personal wants. I had applied to many different places and was becoming a bit impatient but I made sure that I kept on striving so that I could attain my first job. I eventually received a call back from this shoe store where I hoped to work and became employed. This was a huge accomplishment for me along with the grades that I was getting.
When I sit and look back at how hurt I was after my uncle passed to where I am humbly at now, I can say that not only am I proud but my family is proud as well of what I have accomplished after such hard times. I feel good knowing that my uncle is looking down on me seeing that I’m still working my hardest.I have made up my mind that I am going to keep it this way because it is a great feeling to know I’m pushing myself to do and achieve what I have always had to potential to do.