I am the last child out of eight from my father and out of three from my mother. I grew up in the heart of Boston, Massachusetts, the border line between Roxbury and Dorchester right behind Franklin Park Zoo. Currently I reside in Roxbury, Massachusetts. As a child I listened to my parents 8-tracks and the local radio station, 1090AM WILD playing: "oldie but goodie" favorites from Gladys Night and the Pips to Prince with Purple Rain. I attended Boston Public schools and I am thankful my parents never took me out of it.

Since the death of my grandmother in 1996, life has thrown me every curve possible. In 2002 I almost lost my mother to colon cancer. This was the scariest time of my life. In only the 7th grade, 13 years old, one close sister and an over working father I didn't want to lose my mother. Fortunately she recovered and is now a cancer survivor.

May 25th, 2003 I woke to my Dad yelling "the house is on fire". It's funny because my sister and I would play around saying since we lived on the first floor, if the house ever caught fire, we'd take all of our dolls and clothes with us because it'd be so easy to grab everything. Yet that plan never followed through. Not much could be salvaged. I was in the eighth grade and my sister was finishing her sophomore year in high school. We were homeless for four months, three of them I walked on a broken toe (I raced my sister up a set of stairs and tripped on the up ...smh). My parents couldn't afford the hospital bills so it healed over on its own.

In 2004, my father was diagnosed with prostate cancer. Never once did I think both my parents could suffer from such a disease. With the aide of a tremendous team of surgeons, cancer specialists and the grace of God, daddy survived and is alive at the age of 71 today.

Senior year at English High, fall 2006 I was elected co-captain of the basketball team, captain of the volleyball team and Senior Class President. Summer 2007, I headed to Bentley University which is now my Alma Marter!

I chronicalize my past as a youth because it taught me three important things that I work had towards today. Perseverance, Integrity and Success. When the tough gets going the going gets tough; I want to make sure I bring my family closer and closer towards success and to help others, specifically at risk youth share that same vision.

By the time I am 25 I'm not sure where I want to be, but I know it will be 1 of 2 things. I will either be campaigning as Boston's next At-Large City Council or in Washington D.C building a career around social responsibility while partaking in a Doctoral program at George Washington University.