The 2019 recipient of the Jimmy Nhat Nguyen scholarship is Jennifer Elliot. Returning to school after 10 years, she's more motivated and focused than ever to complete a nursing degree. Balancing a family of 2 kids and school courses is not easy, but she's found ways to incorporate learning into routine daily life chores. As Ms. Elliot's anatomy professor noted, "She involved her children when studying bones by having them model in poses for her." We wish her the best in school and life, and her passion gives her the strength to fulfill the nursing degree in the near future.
There are moments in your life when your inner voice speaks so loudly that you are stopped dead in your tracks. Although dismissing that voice is so often achieved, it is often at pivotal moments whereby we should pay credence to that inner voice and follow it at all costs. For when we listen to that voice we separate ourselves from those who dream of their passion to those who fulfill their passion. From which point, building blocks of success and contribution to ourselves and our community are eternally established.
From a young age it always came natural for me to help others. My innate ability to empathize and nurture others came to call at a young age of 10 when my parents divorced and I took care of my siblings and by default my parents; who by then had relied on alcohol to cope with a series of poor decisions they had made. With domestic amends in play, I navigated the throws of High School. I played second base for the High School Softball Team while attending school alongside a Regional Occupation Program which introduced me to the world of nursing. Upon graduating I became a Certified Nursing Assistant which spoke to my inner voice and ignited a passion inside me. In pursuit of a Nursing Degree I enrolled at my local City College. Yet, with financial pressures taking front seat, I began working my way up the ranks in retail and school quickly took a 10 year back seat. I made a comfortable career in retail starting as a cashier and pursued promotions into positions such as Human Resource Manager, Store Manager and by the birth of my son, was seated as an Executive with Macy’s overseas.
The birth of my now 4 year old son, rocked my world and stripped me of my then reality when he was born with a congenital disease that went undiagnosed for 3 weeks. I was blindsided as pure love and joy became a race to save our infants son’s life. Everything stood still and the only thing I could hear was my inner voice, which spoke so loudly, it stopped me in my tracks and guided my husband and I through a medical journey with our first born child. From overseas, to the Hawaiian Islands and to finally settle back to our roots in Southern California, our baby boy was not out of the woods, but was thriving. As a year of paid maternity leave came to an end, my calling to nurture my son took a front seat and I sadly parted ways with my company. With mounting medical bills, financial ruins, the death of my Father, the death of my career, my inner voice spoke so loudly it stopped in me dead in my tracks. I knew there was only one thing left to do, pursue my Bachelor of Science Degree as a Registered Nurse. I immediately enrolled at Long Beach City College. During spring of 2018 I hit a milestone in my education and my personal life by completing my Associates of Science Degree with a 3.6 GPA and giving birth to my second child a beautiful, healthy baby girl.
As I Iook forward to my future, I see myself working as a Registered Nurse locally and continuing my commitment as a nurse by pursuing my Master’s Degree. My husband and I plan to raise our two children to follow in our footsteps and be good stewards of the community, by participating in local volunteer work for city events, environmental and educational groups. Whereby another generation of our family of business owners, educators and city workers will make a positive impact on the quality of traditions and family orientation that Lakewood, Long Beach and surrounding cities is revered for. The award of this scholarship will afford me the opportunity to continue to pursue my education as I raise my young children. As a single income family unit we are classified as “the working poor”; whereby we make just enough to not qualify for government assisted programs and just enough to make ends meet. The pursuit of my educational goals removes a much needed income from our household and replaces it with a loving and nurturing Mother.
I wear many hats in my life. I am a woman, a wife, a mother, a daughter, a friend, a caregiver. I am the person that any and everyone turns to in their time of need. My calling is to give back to my family, community and society wearing the hat of a nurse. I look back at every hospital stay, car ride, plane ride, whereby my schoolbooks were in tow and am thankful for my inner voice that drives me to take the necessary steps to becoming the first person in my family to achieve a college education. My series of goals spans the course of my life and has distinct markings of educational, personal, financial, domestic and societal achievements. I would be delighted if your inner voice speaks so loudly that you stop right in your tracks and make an investment in me.