Growing Up In A Middle Class

Growing up in a middle-class family taught me to never let life’s obstacles cause me to lose sight of my dreams. Having a middle-class socioeconomic status comes with plentiful blessings and privileges, but my college experiences changed the way I think about who I am. Because I live in the state of Georgia, I had the privilege of taking advantage of the HOPE scholarship. I was also a Pell Grant recipient, and the combination of scholarship and grant money was still not sufficient to cover tuition, fees, and textbooks. When I turned 18 and began my first college semester, I started working at Home Depot part-time to pay the remaining balance of my tuition bill and to purchase the textbooks I needed. With one semester completed, I searched the

My junior year of college, I was elected as Local Philanthropy Chair in my sorority and had the opportunity to coordinate events and build relationships with local organizations and members of the community. I organized for my sorority members to serve dinner to the women and children who were clients of the domestic violence shelter, No One Alone. Once we arrived at the clients’ home, we were met with gratitude and asked to stay for dinner. Despite being shy, I spoke to a woman who told me how she wanted to take classes in the University’s continuing education program. She told me that she wanted a better life for her daughter and that she would continue working hard at the thrift store that No One Alone manages, so she could save enough money to start earning her degree. This experience made me realize how fortunate I am to be able to pay for my college degree and afford the other luxuries that I had previously taken for granted. As I engaged in more philanthropic activities within my sorority, I developed a yearning to help people who were less fortunate than