Drive Nia's Dream

Hello, my name is Brie Whitmire, and I am a second-year medical student at OSU Medicine.

Yesterday I stopped to check on a driver who was broken down in a dangerous location. I stopped thinking I would try to help her get her to move her car off the ramp and to a safer location and be on my way. She didn't ask for a thing, but her face told me she hadn't caught a break in a while. After calling AAA, I strapped her son, 5-month-old Malik, in the backseat of my car with my giant dog, and I took them home.

Nia is 24 years old. It two seconds for me to recognize that this car breakdown was more than an inconvenience. You see, Nia doesn't just have a dream. Nia has a 10-year plan. She is going to attend nursing school. After she earns her RN, she will spend the next 5 years working both as a nurse and providing one on one care for dementia patients. Once she gains the experience she needs, she will start working towards her ultimate goal of opening an assisted living facility for the elderly, particularly those suffering from Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia. This is a well-thought-out, realistic, and focused plan. Nia is also the sole provider for Malik Junior. She doesn't have a safety net. She doesn't have a family that can help stabilize her path. She is living in a public housing community that should be condemned, driving a car that is unsafe, and now facing repair costs that exceed the car's value. Despite all of this, Nia has not asked for a single thing. I'm actually surprised she agreed to let me post this. She knows how to depend on herself alone to keep moving forward, but this car is absolutely critical in order for her to succeed. Tulsa lacks a public transit system that can handle the demands of Nia's tight and full schedule. She needs a car.

When we give to others we are hoping to make a big difference and are disappointed when we barely scratch the surface. This is it folks. This is an opportunity to see the difference we want our gift to make. Let's help Nia reinforce her path so she can get to work, get Malik Junior to daycare, get to the grocery store, and continue laying the bricks toward her goals.