Help Me Go to College
Donation protected
Please help my dreams come true...
Hello! I'm Marta Lopez
This past June I graduated from Piedmont High School with a 4.7 GPA and Summa Cum Laude as well as honor cords for being an NC Scholar, National Honor Society President and National Art Honor Society Vice President.
After a devastating realization that I could not attend my dream school (Chapel Hill) due to financial issues, I almost didn't attend college at all. My dreams of becoming a Cardiothoracic Surgeon and establishing clinics in third world countries had been shattered. I was angry, mostly. I was angry with myself for not realizing the status of my citizenship overtook my life. I was angry at the government for not accepting me as an American. I was just angry. I have come to the conclusion, however, that I am an American. It doesn't matter what a piece of paper says. I bleed red, white, and blue just like every other inhabitant of the states. There is no other country that fills my heart with more content than America.
Thankfully, with the help of my loving guidance counselors at PHS (I cannot thank you enough), I was able to enroll at Wingate University. Like all other teenagers, I was reluctant at first becuase Wingate is too close to home and we all know we just want to leave the parents when we go to college.
Still, I couldn't deny the wonderful opportunity to go to college. Because of my academics, Wingate granted me a very good scholarship, but it is still not enough. I need at least another $20,000 in order to make my dream of attending college a more realistic goal.
Now, I know what you're thinking: "If you're so smart why don't you get scholarships?"
Well the answer to that is very simple. I'm sure none of you have ever really paid attention to the requirements listed under most scholarships, but I am here to tell you that those requirements are a nightmare for me. Due to my residential status in the states, I cannot apply for most scholarships. I am not a U.S. Citizen or Permanent Resident. For that, I am unable to get any type of federal aid. I was born in El Salvador and was granted Political Asylum at the age of six in order to escape the political turmoil that had overtaken my beloved country. I thank America for my freedom everyday because otherwise I would have been a kid soldier and possibly killed. I know a lot of us take this freedom for granted, and I do sometimes too, but we must all remember that we are fortunate.
I was angry for a while, because America was where I should be making my dreams come true and not being torn down. But I accept the challenge.
So I come here, humbled and broken. I come here to the land of the free and the home of the brave and ask that you help me. Whatever little you can give is enough for me, but please help me. Whether it's just by sharing this with a friend or giving me fifty cents. I will be grateful for anything.
In advance, thank you. Thank you so much.
To answer a few questions:
1. I cannot take out loans because I am not a citizen or permanent resident. If I were to take out a loan I would need a co-signer who is a citizen or resident, and my parents are in the same situation as I am.
2. I cannot apply for citizenship because the government has to approve TPS holders to apply for naturalization, and the government has not done so.
3. I do have Social Security and work permit, courtesy of my TPS.
Hello! I'm Marta Lopez
This past June I graduated from Piedmont High School with a 4.7 GPA and Summa Cum Laude as well as honor cords for being an NC Scholar, National Honor Society President and National Art Honor Society Vice President.
After a devastating realization that I could not attend my dream school (Chapel Hill) due to financial issues, I almost didn't attend college at all. My dreams of becoming a Cardiothoracic Surgeon and establishing clinics in third world countries had been shattered. I was angry, mostly. I was angry with myself for not realizing the status of my citizenship overtook my life. I was angry at the government for not accepting me as an American. I was just angry. I have come to the conclusion, however, that I am an American. It doesn't matter what a piece of paper says. I bleed red, white, and blue just like every other inhabitant of the states. There is no other country that fills my heart with more content than America.
Thankfully, with the help of my loving guidance counselors at PHS (I cannot thank you enough), I was able to enroll at Wingate University. Like all other teenagers, I was reluctant at first becuase Wingate is too close to home and we all know we just want to leave the parents when we go to college.
Still, I couldn't deny the wonderful opportunity to go to college. Because of my academics, Wingate granted me a very good scholarship, but it is still not enough. I need at least another $20,000 in order to make my dream of attending college a more realistic goal.
Now, I know what you're thinking: "If you're so smart why don't you get scholarships?"
Well the answer to that is very simple. I'm sure none of you have ever really paid attention to the requirements listed under most scholarships, but I am here to tell you that those requirements are a nightmare for me. Due to my residential status in the states, I cannot apply for most scholarships. I am not a U.S. Citizen or Permanent Resident. For that, I am unable to get any type of federal aid. I was born in El Salvador and was granted Political Asylum at the age of six in order to escape the political turmoil that had overtaken my beloved country. I thank America for my freedom everyday because otherwise I would have been a kid soldier and possibly killed. I know a lot of us take this freedom for granted, and I do sometimes too, but we must all remember that we are fortunate.
I was angry for a while, because America was where I should be making my dreams come true and not being torn down. But I accept the challenge.
So I come here, humbled and broken. I come here to the land of the free and the home of the brave and ask that you help me. Whatever little you can give is enough for me, but please help me. Whether it's just by sharing this with a friend or giving me fifty cents. I will be grateful for anything.
In advance, thank you. Thank you so much.
To answer a few questions:
1. I cannot take out loans because I am not a citizen or permanent resident. If I were to take out a loan I would need a co-signer who is a citizen or resident, and my parents are in the same situation as I am.
2. I cannot apply for citizenship because the government has to approve TPS holders to apply for naturalization, and the government has not done so.
3. I do have Social Security and work permit, courtesy of my TPS.
Organizer
Marta Lopez
Organizer
