Send Clarissa to UCLA

Hello everyone, my name is Clarissa Johnson.  I am currently a 17 year old Senior at Overfelt High School in East Side San Jose, Ca.  I have been accepted to attend UCLA, my dream school!  I am so thankful and blessed to have the opportunity to attend the school I've  always talked to my family about since I was 10.  I have worked very hard throughout high school to keep a 4.0 GPA and was accepted based on my academics.  I've participated in all of the following clubs and activities on my school's campus throughout my four years: Cheerleading team, Black Student Union (BSU), Book Club, initiator of my school's first Powerpuff Football Club, Participant in our schools Annual Multi-Cultural Show, Health Fair Participant, WCO Summer Jam Coordinator, AVID President (Jr. Year), and the Track & Field Team. 

Along with my involvement in school, I'm actively involved in my church as well. I attend Golden Altars Ministries World Outreach Church and have been raised there my entire life. I am a dancer on our praise team, a youth class leader, apart of the youth choir, and help in the young disciple and childcare department.

For most of my life, I was raised in a very low income part of East Side San Jose, Ca.  When I was just 11 years old, my siblings and I unfortunately lost our mother to heart failure. This was a very hard time for me, due to her being the person involved in my life 100% of the time- from being in girl scouts together to her chaperoning almost every one of my field trips. I have absolutely no connection with my father.  My younger brother, nephew, and I were lucky enough to all be taken in by my wonderful grandmother who has been raising us ever since.  She has worked very hard to provide and raise us the best way possible.  My nephews mom, one of my older sisters, sadly passed away just 3 years after our mother did. Through all this I've managed to maintain my 4.0 GPA in school to be able to follow my dreams of attending UCLA and making my family very proud. As the first in my family to go away to college, I know this will be an amazing journey to take in my life and I know this is a dream come true for my mother and I. She would have loved to have lived through this with me.

I am trying to raise money to to pay for my first years worth of books in college, purchase a laptop, items I'll be needing to be sucessful in school, supplies I will need for my dorm room, and travel costs to move myself to Los Angeles in just a few months!

Any donation of any size would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you all and God Bless!