My New Path Starts With My Choices
My New Path Starts With My Choices
Dear Family & Friends,
Here's my story and the reason why I am asking for your help. After high school, I asked myself what I wanted in life . My papa always said that I am a natural mechanic, fixing things all of the time, and in 2005, I started college at Chattahoochee Tech, studying to earn my degree in automotive technology. Around the same time, when I was working as a busboy at Fuddruckers, I went to the Wellstar Health Place on my day off to swim and get some exercise. While I was there, the Pool Aquatics Manager saw me swimming and told me that I should become a lifeguard and come work there. I've always loved the water, so I took her advice, got CPR & First Aid certified, and got a new job. It was a great way to make money while I earned my Associate's Degree.
Over the years, lifeguarding turned into teaching kids how to swim, and I really loved it, so I have kept it up for the last 12 years. Many of my kids' parents openly thank me for continuing to teach. Unfortunately, being a career lifeguard and part time swim teacher doesn't pay very well. I have struggled with many decisions, wondering often how to make it on my own. Finally, I told myself that I need to make a change and went to work as a mechanic at a Toyota dealership... and then a G&S automotive... and eventually a Firestone; none of them working out. Though I often work on the cars of my friends and neighbors, and I really enjoy it, I found being a professional mechanic to be very labor intensive and, after waiting so many years since graduating college, it was difficult for me to keep up with the fast pace of the commercial auto repair industry. So that's how I found myself back in the water, swimming happily and not earning much. I am thankful that my family and my fiance are so loving and supportive, as well as understanding and "incredibly patient", as Megan likes to say.
After spending a lot of time thinking about my life and what I might be good at, an opportunity finally presented itself. Originally, it was Megan who suggested to me that I should see about scuba diving and possibly seek employment at the GA Aquarium. It seemed a little farfetched at the time, but a couple of months later, the aquarium showed up at work. Supervisors started coming over with staff dive trainees to practice at the county, and learning more about it became as simple as walking up to someone and starting a conversation. That someone happened to be a man named Jonathan, a supervisor of a dive team at the aquarium, and after speaking with him several times, new ideas started taking shape. I began researching local dive schools and learned all about certifications and equipment. I researched salaries and opportunities for professional divers and was happy to find that there is a special place for people who are mechanically inclined in the diving industry. I was even able to find an instructor who is willing to work with me on the course fee and sell me all of the equipment I will need to get started at great a deal. Everything began falling into place except for one problem: how am I going to pay for all of this?
After doing all of the legwork, I have determined that I need a sum of $2000 to make this dream a reality. $500 will get me certified, and $1500 will get me all of the necessary gear including a wetsuit, dive mask, fins, regulator, bc (essentially the backpack used for holding all of the tanks and gear) and dive computer. This may seem like a lot, but the computers alone can cost as much as $1,000. I would like to be able to say that saving up what would seem like a small amount for some people will be easy, but the truth is, with my current income, Megan and I are not in a position to save much. What little we have been able to save is intended to pay for our wedding (which we have already postponed a year due to lack of funds). That is where I hope all of you might come in.
I am ready to make a change in my life. I don't want to be a thirty-something part-time lifeguard and swim instructor anymore. I am ready to seriously pursue a career that I am passionate about, and one where compensation is fair and I can support a family that I hope to have one day. That I have waited so long to figure this out for myself is on me, but I can't take back the past, I can only look to the future. If I can get 200 people to donate even $10 to help me out, then I can take the first steps to a new life. My dominos are all set, and now, all that's left is to knock 'em down! Even if I am unable to meet my $2000 goal, any amount that I am fortunate enough to raise will bring me that much closer to becoming the man that I know I can be. For less than the price of a movie ticket for one person, you could be a part of changing my life for the better. I speak for myself, my fiance and my immediate family when I say that we will all be eternally grateful. I hope you will consider helping me reach my goal and begin my life's journey. It's been a long time coming, but I am finally ready.
Love and Thanks,
Zack
Dear Family & Friends,
Here's my story and the reason why I am asking for your help. After high school, I asked myself what I wanted in life . My papa always said that I am a natural mechanic, fixing things all of the time, and in 2005, I started college at Chattahoochee Tech, studying to earn my degree in automotive technology. Around the same time, when I was working as a busboy at Fuddruckers, I went to the Wellstar Health Place on my day off to swim and get some exercise. While I was there, the Pool Aquatics Manager saw me swimming and told me that I should become a lifeguard and come work there. I've always loved the water, so I took her advice, got CPR & First Aid certified, and got a new job. It was a great way to make money while I earned my Associate's Degree.
Over the years, lifeguarding turned into teaching kids how to swim, and I really loved it, so I have kept it up for the last 12 years. Many of my kids' parents openly thank me for continuing to teach. Unfortunately, being a career lifeguard and part time swim teacher doesn't pay very well. I have struggled with many decisions, wondering often how to make it on my own. Finally, I told myself that I need to make a change and went to work as a mechanic at a Toyota dealership... and then a G&S automotive... and eventually a Firestone; none of them working out. Though I often work on the cars of my friends and neighbors, and I really enjoy it, I found being a professional mechanic to be very labor intensive and, after waiting so many years since graduating college, it was difficult for me to keep up with the fast pace of the commercial auto repair industry. So that's how I found myself back in the water, swimming happily and not earning much. I am thankful that my family and my fiance are so loving and supportive, as well as understanding and "incredibly patient", as Megan likes to say.
After spending a lot of time thinking about my life and what I might be good at, an opportunity finally presented itself. Originally, it was Megan who suggested to me that I should see about scuba diving and possibly seek employment at the GA Aquarium. It seemed a little farfetched at the time, but a couple of months later, the aquarium showed up at work. Supervisors started coming over with staff dive trainees to practice at the county, and learning more about it became as simple as walking up to someone and starting a conversation. That someone happened to be a man named Jonathan, a supervisor of a dive team at the aquarium, and after speaking with him several times, new ideas started taking shape. I began researching local dive schools and learned all about certifications and equipment. I researched salaries and opportunities for professional divers and was happy to find that there is a special place for people who are mechanically inclined in the diving industry. I was even able to find an instructor who is willing to work with me on the course fee and sell me all of the equipment I will need to get started at great a deal. Everything began falling into place except for one problem: how am I going to pay for all of this?
After doing all of the legwork, I have determined that I need a sum of $2000 to make this dream a reality. $500 will get me certified, and $1500 will get me all of the necessary gear including a wetsuit, dive mask, fins, regulator, bc (essentially the backpack used for holding all of the tanks and gear) and dive computer. This may seem like a lot, but the computers alone can cost as much as $1,000. I would like to be able to say that saving up what would seem like a small amount for some people will be easy, but the truth is, with my current income, Megan and I are not in a position to save much. What little we have been able to save is intended to pay for our wedding (which we have already postponed a year due to lack of funds). That is where I hope all of you might come in.
I am ready to make a change in my life. I don't want to be a thirty-something part-time lifeguard and swim instructor anymore. I am ready to seriously pursue a career that I am passionate about, and one where compensation is fair and I can support a family that I hope to have one day. That I have waited so long to figure this out for myself is on me, but I can't take back the past, I can only look to the future. If I can get 200 people to donate even $10 to help me out, then I can take the first steps to a new life. My dominos are all set, and now, all that's left is to knock 'em down! Even if I am unable to meet my $2000 goal, any amount that I am fortunate enough to raise will bring me that much closer to becoming the man that I know I can be. For less than the price of a movie ticket for one person, you could be a part of changing my life for the better. I speak for myself, my fiance and my immediate family when I say that we will all be eternally grateful. I hope you will consider helping me reach my goal and begin my life's journey. It's been a long time coming, but I am finally ready.
Love and Thanks,
Zack
Organizer
Zack Alger
Organizer
Marietta, GA