To my family, friends and colleagues, I am in my final year of my PhD program at Grand Canyon University with only a few dissertation courses left to take. I only have a few chapters left to write as I am currently understanding how athletic identity addiction differs amongst populations of student-athletes at the division I level. As most of you might already know, I work with this population a great deal as a strength and conditioning coach at California Baptist University. I am striving everyday to have a lasting impact in this generation of students and part of that is understanding their difficulties with mental and identity health as they continue to develop into adults and enter the workforce. As we have recently learned, suicide is now the second leading cause of death among NCAA student-athletes. My hope and desire is to finish my current program and to continue a lifelong work in studying our student-athletes to make an impact on those you might know or love.

I am in need of funding to continue the last year of my program as my loans that I can take out have been capped, and I don't qualify for much of any other loans. Those of you that know me understand that this is a hard thing for me to reach out for, is financial support from others, but with the time winding down and the end in sight, I have run out of options. Anything would help, even possibly sharing this fundraiser with others I consider great support. Thanks to all in advance!

With Love,

David Herd M.S., CSCS, in hopes to be David Herd PhD, M.S., CSCS