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Dear Joseph Drown Foundation,
This program has been a foundation upon which I have grown and
developed as a student and a catalyst for success not only through
my years at Lennox Middle School but through my four years at
Hawthorne High School. The support-not only monetary but emotionally
from mentors who have demonstrated unconditional love and guidance-
has been more significant than words could say. I have done more
with the guidance of mentors and the support from you and this
scholarship than anything that I could have dreamed of.
This scholarship took me from a shy and quiet seventh grader
to a poised and confident senior. The trips I took with my mentor
were elemental in showing me a different world, a world where
graffiti didn't loom in the distance and where success was possible.
Mrs. Wallis showed me a world where I didn't have to remain in
the same place, where I could grow as a person-it was a world
I wanted to be a part of. With knowledge of what was possible,
I came into high school ready to learn but without solid expectations.
I took every opportunity I could and with the confidence I had
garnered through the scholarship and by the simple fact that
I had won it, my expectations slowly reached higher and higher
proportions as each year went by. I applied to programs like
the Math and Science Upward Bound and was accepted; I did things
and applied for things I didn't think I could accomplish. I did
my best to help my community and participated in an endless number
of clubs, distancing myself from the black hole of the neighborhood
I grew up in where young people were caught in the violence and
dangers of my town.
I want to thank you for giving a twelve-year-old a chance. In my own experience,
just the fact that someone believed I could succeed and gave me the monetary
support is surreal. I come from a place where achievements are little and people
are in the dark of what they could do. They remain in the same place for all
their lives and do little to improve their future. Visionaries such as those
in your foundation are capable of taking those kids who see no hope in their
lives, who are surrounded by negativity , to change their paths.
You have not only given me hope but a sense of duty to do as much as I can
to pay you back, not monetarily but through my actions. I want to let those
that helped me when I didn't understand what I could accomplish know that they
have made a difference in someone's life.
Thank you once again for the opportunities I have received from
your support--monetarily, emotionally and everything else in
between. It is people like you who truly make this world a better
place. Thank you from the bottom of my heart, what you have done
for me is beyond words.
Sincerely and with gratitude,
Maryell Hernandez
Junior at Harvard University
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