Coming home by Rachel

Coming home by Rachel - August 2023 Scholarship Essay

I grew up in a small town in Central Florida, called Wesley Chapel. At age eight, I thought the distance from my house to my elementary school I walked each morning was the whole town. I knew it would grow, if having nine car dealerships on that same main road was any indication. I just didn’t know I would too.

My community carried me through childhood, and taught me how important it is to look back. The people who helped me get to my dreams are still there, watching. It’s my job to come home. When I was eight, my brother and I competed in a Scotty’s Facial Tissue competition. It was called Trees Rock, and we had to create a three minute video about why conserving trees was important. The competition offered thousands of dollars to the winner’s school for whatever cause they felt was necessary. My brother and I climbed trees and told jokes and explained why what we had to say was important. Our community listened. My brother and I won for our school and proudly purchased outdoor equipment that remains there today.

I cannot claim that an competition I won at eight is my greatest achievement, but it taught me a valuable lesson. Try. Maybe you’ll grow from it. My greatest achievement in my education wasn’t earning $10,000 for my school. It was learning that I can do much more. The most important thing I gained from my community was the knowledge that I could do anything. Knowing this, I choose to go to the University of Florida, pursue a marketing degree, and come back to feed my community. At my young age, I learned that the greatest thing you have is the people that support you. Asking my peers to vote for my video, I had the opportunity to support my school. In many ways, it is just that simple. Ask for help. Work hard. Come back. My impact will be through bringing the technology and knowledge of my generation back to my town and helping it grow even more. I was taught, through persistence of kindness and support, that the people around me want me to succeed. This kind of innate confidence makes a world of difference in my work now, as I go through growing pains with understanding. I was made to do hard things. I was made to grow.

I walk through life with the people of my community behind me, and for that reason, I can proceed confidently. For that reason, I will return. The most important way someone can serve their community is by coming back to thank them. Too many people leave their community and never look back. The lesson I learned at eight years old, that I carry with me to this day, is to look back. Those people changed your life.

I hope to one day return to my elementary school and replace that equipment once again. I can never separate myself from where I came from, and that’s okay. I will carry my community with me, and I will thank them every step of the way. Those people changed my life. They are why I come home.