What does it mean to be a Ford? by Jasmine

What does it mean to be a Ford? by Jasmine - February 2024 Scholarship Essay

In 1979, Ford Motor Company introduced the slogan “Built Ford Tough,” meaning they overcome challenges with confidence, courage, and optimism. This is also my family, the Ford family, motto and is something that we seek to embody in every aspect of our lives.

As a young girl, I had a difficult time learning to read. Many nights were filled with tears and frustration resulting in a visit to the eye doctor where we learned that my eyes have a convergence deficiency. My family and I created a plan to help improve my vision. I was upset in the beginning but my parents explained being “Ford Tough” meant taking on challenges and overcoming them. We found a physical therapist for my eyes and I challenged myself to read every day, sometimes staying late so that I could finish the chapter for the day. There were many nights when I came home with pounding headaches and would ask my parents to sit at the table with me so they could help me read my homework. I talked to my Assistant Principal about wanting to be a better reader and she became my reading buddy. Whenever I got frustrated and wanted to give up, my parents would ask me “Who are you?” and my answer would always be “Ford Tough”.

I learned courage and what it means to disrupt the standard from my father’s parents, Lt. Colonel John and Patricia Ford. In addition to adopting my father and his twin brother from Korea where being bi-racial was taboo, they started the first branch of the NAACP in western North Carolina. This model is one that I often take up as one of the few students of color in my high school or on my soccer team. My presence in these spaces disrupts the status quo as I am often the only one like me in these spaces. My school experience has provided the opportunity to educate others about how different people might be impacted by maintaining current policies instead of challenging barriers and perceptions. I am “Ford Tough” because I challenge myself to see the world as a place with endless possibilities.

Being “Ford Tough” means being resilient in the midst of adversity and extreme grief. In 2022, my cousin, aunt, and Nana died. While each death took my breath away, I was most defeated by the death of my Nana. As the first in her family to graduate from high school and go to college in what was a segregated south, my Nana demonstrated confidence and determination in all that she did. Her enthusiasm and commitment to service are woven into the fabric of our family.

My Nana had been battling cancer for several years and had recently come to live with us. My siblings and I quickly established a hierarchy of responsibilities. The morning she died I started similar to every other day. Each of us carried out our responsibilities, getting kisses and firm lectures with equal regularity, laughter and love all around until it was not. Even though my mother is an only child, 500 people from the community showed up to my Nana’s funeral.

It was on this day that I questioned being “Ford Tough.” I could not imagine how we would move forward and honestly, I did not want to. My Nana and her battle with cancer taught me about faith over fear and what it means to use faith as a weapon for life’s challenges. She taught me to face challenges head-on, to be patient to understand the truth, and to be upset. It is by her example and the example of those before me that I appreciate the opportunity to go to college.

On the soccer field, in the classroom, and throughout my life my faith is bigger than my fear. I continue to lean on these examples that came before me and strive to be “Ford Tough” every day.