From Busy to Beautiful by Sarah

From Busy to Beautiful by Sarah - January 2017 Scholarship Essay

Sometimes it can feel daunting on how just a little ole me can make a difference in a great big world. I have all these ideas and desires to see change happen and be apart of it but how do I start? Will it even make a difference?

These are some of the feelings I experience when setting out to find opportunities to be a bigger part of my community and see a change. I was overworked between school and my job, stressed out and ultimately didn’t feel like I had the time to do one more thing. Little did I know that these were the exact things that would lead me to a partnership with the Latino Behavioral Health Services Non-Profit Organization.

Mentally I was exhausted, I felt like I needed someone to talk to and to help me on my journey towards earning my degree while working full time. When I was made aware there was a new class through my Honors College that focused on mental health and earned 9 credits through working with the community I felt like it was an answer to the stage of life I was in.

The purpose of this class was to partner with a local Non-Profit Organization in the community and aid them in combatting mental illness not only in their own community but in Salt Lake City as a whole. Through this class I was able to network with and be introduced to leaders of the LGBTQ+ community, Congolese members, Latino/a individuals and many more. This was the perfect marriage of school, passion and volunteer work where I felt like I could relate to our partners not only on mental health issues but also in my stage of life where I was juggling different titles and jobs.

The most rewarding experience of all was being able to raise money and fund a class taught in Spanish for the Latino Behavioral Health Center on combatting and recognizing depression in their families and provide all attendees with hand outs, food and child care for the 6-week classes. The opportunity to serve others made all the hard work, late nights and translation the most rewarding experience I have yet to encounter in my collegiate career. On top of that I found a way to work my school and volunteer schedule into one and hope to encourage other students feeling the way I did that they too can find the best of both worlds!