Prompt 2: Why is community service important in your life?
“John,” the school nurse said as she interrupted my seventh grade math class, “Your parents are here to see you.” Hmm… this can’t be a good thing, I thought. It was, in fact, the day that brain cancer and my name would be forever linked. It was like a long scary game of Chutes and Ladders with lots of ups and downs. And it was a game I could not be sure I would win. However with the aid of many, I did make it through brain surgery, horrifically debilitating rounds of radiation, and a year and a half of chemotherapy. As difficult as that ordeal was, I would not change those years. As a result of cancer, I have been the recipient of more love, professionalism, compassion, and encouragement than few will know. It is the entirety of my cancer experience that has profoundly affected my life’s purpose. It has influenced my career path, my appreciation for life, and has given me the desire to help others, particularly those who have cancer.
One positive aspect of cancer is that it exposed me to the field of occupational therapy. Throughout my life I received occupational therapy services to improve my motor skills. It was not until I underwent an MRI at twelve years old that I found out my lack of coordination was due to a medulloblastoma, a cancerous brain tumor located in my cerebellum. It was a growing tumor that I had since birth. After I had the brain tumor removed, I once again needed occupational therapy services, this time to help me regain daily functions. These two experiences have had a significant impact on my life. As a result, I look forward to a career as an occupational therapist so that I may help coach others to live independently. Cancer gave me a unique opportunity to interact with health care professionals, not available to many my age.
As a pediatric occupational therapist, I will understand and relate to the struggles experienced by my patients with motor and coordination deficiencies. Having a higher education will benefit me through learning different techniques necessary to improve my patients' outcomes. I like the idea of having a career where I can assist people in getting back to enjoying life and resuming a daily routine.
While I knew my personal experience gave me the confidence to work in a pediatric setting, I did not know the needs of patients in a geriatric setting. When an opportunity presented itself last summer to work at the Fairfield Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Crownsville, Maryland, I did not hesitate to take the job. There I assisted occupational therapists as an unpaid intern. I noticed that the physical therapists and the occupational therapists often used the same treatment exercises. I was intrigued by my observations. I learned that physical therapists and occupational therapists work together for the patient's benefit. For example, after the physical therapist used the dumbbell curls on his patients for the purpose of regaining arm strength, the occupational therapist used the dumbbell curls exercise for the purpose of picking something up. The internship reassured me that my past experiences held true in leading me to the correct career. I have been accepted into Towson University's Occupational Therapy Program and will start in the Fall semester.
For me, cancer was also a humbling experience. Before cancer, I took pride in being self-reliant. However, cancer put me in a position where I had to rely on others. I relied on my nurses and doctors for their medical expertise, and my friends to help me cope with emotional stress. Cancer taught me to accept help from others.
The support I received during my treatment gave me the resolve to ‘pay it forward.’ I actively look for opportunities to benefit others in need. Since recovering from cancer, I taught Vacation Bible School, prepared food for the homeless and participated in three home rebuilding mission trips. I built a wheelchair ramp for an elderly women in Cumberland, Maryland, remodeled a bathroom in a damaged home from Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, Louisiana, and rebuilt porches for low income families in Syracuse, New York. Cancer extended my compassion for others in unfortunate circumstances and deepened my desire to assist others.
Having battled through the horrific experience of brain cancer, I committed myself to helping other children who are facing similar health crises. First I spoke during the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center’s live radio-thon fundraiser. I spoke passionately about the hardships a child cancer patient faces and explained the need for children’s cancer research. The radio station broadcasted my interview repeatedly, as they received a spike in donations during each broadcast. Shortly after the radio-thon, I met Ms. Shirley Howard, President of the Children’s Cancer Foundation (CCF). Having dedicated her life, raising millions of dollars for CCF, Ms. Howard became my fundraising inspiration. I joined Ms. Howard as a spokesperson at CCF events, sharing in her fundraising commitment in order to bring new treatments forward, attract the best doctors, and make facilities “kid friendly” for children battling cancer. I carried this commitment with me when I began high school. I became an active member in the school’s service organization, Key Club, working alongside Ms. Howard and the school’s administration to create a successful bowl-a-thon fundraiser for CCF. Currently I am President of the Key Club and the bowl-a-thon is now an annual school wide event, which has raised thousands of dollars. Additionally, I spoke for the American Cancer Society and participated for three years in their Relay for Life fundraiser. I will continue fundraising to benefit those who face cancer because no child should have his name and cancer mentioned in the same sentence.
In addition to fundraising, I continue to participate in various studies documenting the long term effects of brain cancer. I hope that by participating in these studies, scientists will better understand the disease. I recognize that those before me have died from this disease allowing for the medical advances that saved my life. I feel obliged to offer myself to further brain cancer research in any way possible.
As a result of my life circumstances, I have thought extensively about my future and how I can help others. I have received professionalism I intend to model and compassion I intend to share. The care given to me by health professionals has influenced me to pursue a career in the medical field. The charitable actions of others has turned my gratitude into action. Cancer is a part of me. It is the part that drives me and gives my life purpose.
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