#GFMScholarship

September 28, 2007-A day that forever changed my life.I'd had headaches for as long as I could remember, but a debilitating migraine sent me to the ER at the age of sixteen. An MRI revealed a softball-sized tumor and I had brain surgery the next day. They were only able to remove about a third of the pilocytic astrocytoma tumor, as the rest was wrapped around my brainstem. Years of complications followed the cancer diagnosis.
Three weeks after my first surgery I was rushed back to the hospital for another emergency surgery after having collapsed. I had developed an infection in my brain, blood, skull bone, and spinal fluid. A third of my skull bone had to be removed and discarded. The remaining skull needed to heal before they could replace it with a plastic plate, so I lived, day and night, in a helmet for the next six months.



Just seven months after a new plastic skull plate was implanted, the tumor had grown back to its original size and I began six weeks of daily radiation treatments. While the radiation killed the cancer, it made the tumor swell so much that it hit my optical nerves causing me to become legally blind. To prevent further blindness, I underwent another brain surgery to again remove as much of the tumor as possible.

Further complications ensued. My brain had suffered too much trauma. I left the hospital this time in a wheelchair. I couldn't control the left side of my body and it took months to learn how to walk again. Shortly after that surgery, I had my first grand mal seizure. I was seventeen.

For the next five years, I continued to have frequent grand mal seizures. As time went by they grew in severity to the point where the only way to stop them was for me to be put in a drug-induced coma.

Surprisingly, even more so than the cancer and vision loss, the seizure disorder has been the most debilitating component of all my medical issues. I was so defeated to have to drop classes and quit jobs because I never knew when a seizure might occur which could put me out of commission for weeks while I recovered. I worked with autistic kids at the time and was no longer able to do my job unless another staff was present in case I had an episode. The little independence I had left was gone, stripped away by my blindness and inability to control my own consciousness.


While it's been a long road, I have learned a lot about myself. I am stronger than I thought. Through perseverance, I finally received my High School Diploma at the age of 21. With my seizures under control, I also received Associate Degrees in Early Childhood Education and Special Education and I am currently in the final quarter of my Bachelor of Applied Behavioral Science.

Now, at 25 and with a GPA of 3.9, I have just been accepted into the Master of Special Education with Board Certification in Behavior Analysis program at the University of Washington, something I never thought my diagnosis would allow me to do. My health is in good standing currently, seizure free for almost three years, and I think I can really do this, but I have been denied financial aide because the university "ran out of money".


Prior to being diagnosed, I knew that I wanted to work with children with developmental disabilities who have challenging behaviors. I've watched my mother do the same kind of work on a daily basis. Over her 35 year career, she has made a huge impact on the lives of the children she has worked with and their families. For many children with developmental disabilities, challenging behavior is what stands in the way of their inclusion into society. By going to the UW, I hope to help children with developmental disabilities have the same opportunities as you and I have.

A news story of how I came down this path:
http://komonews.com/news/local/unlikely-friends-celebrate-their-long-journey-together


Anything you can do, donate or share this page, would be very much appreciated. Please help me help the disabled community!


#GFMScholarship