I wanted to do more... by Josephine

I wanted to do more... by Josephine - December 2013 Scholarship Essay

Here is who I am: just a girl trying to make a difference in my community and the world. From as far back as I can remember, I have always wanted to make others smile, just make that little difference in lives. When I was eleven, I begged my mother to allow me to volunteer somewhere; she finally allowed me to volunteer at Lorien Nursing Home. I volunteered every week for two years. Whenever they needed help, I was quick to jump in and help. Ruth Colson, Activities Director at Lorien Nursing Home and Rehabilitation Center in Taneytown, Maryland, wrote in a letter to me:

You were one of my best youth volunteers. You were an exception to my ‘rule’ on having
youth volunteers so young. I knew when I met you that you were mature and perfectly
ready, willing and able to be a part of our nursing and rehabilitation team.

It did not end there, I wanted to do more; I wanted to be responsible for making a difference in MY community. I started volunteering at a local daycare, Susan G. Komen for the Cure in honor of my aunt who passed away from breast cancer, Maryland’s Brain Injury Association, and more. I continued until one day it hit me; I still wanted to do MORE. I was only thirteen when I started my own foundation, Josie’s Smiles for Pediatrics. I made it my goal and responsibility to put smiles on faces of pediatric patients and their families at Carroll Hospital Center. To date, I have coordinated the donation of over $30,000 worth of toys, books, candy, infant items, and more!

When I joined Key Club, a high school student-led community service organization, my goal was to involve them in my cause. My Lieutenant Governor, impressed, dedicated Josie’s Smiles for Pediatrics as our division project for Johns Hopkins Children’s Center, raising $2,000 of essentials. The next year, as the current Lieutenant Governor, I was responsible for fifteen Western Maryland Key Clubs; we surpassed our 2012-13 goal, raising over $5,800 worth of toys, food, and hygiene essentials for pediatric patients and families at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center!

My drive, determination, and focus have placed me in situations beyond the ordinary high school student. I have discussed my community with Maryland’s First Lady Katie O’Malley, as well as participating in a day of White House staff briefings and a live-streamed panel discussion with The White House’s Associate Director of Public Engagement/Liaison to Young Americans, Ronnie Cho, as a White House Champion of Change. I have met senators and women’s advocates from across the nation when receiving community service awards. I have met some of the most incredible people who have become my mentors, my peers, but most importantly my best friends.

Throughout my life, I have felt it as my personal responsibility to make a difference in my community. Who am I, you ask? A leader. A volunteer. A young woman who makes a difference. I am focused. I am determined. I am changing the world. I set goals. I take questions, find the answers, and move toward solutions. I devote my time to making a difference in my community.