Adopted Students Scholarship

As an adoptee from a third world country, Ethiopia, Africa, I have experienced psychological and physiological challenges. The most difficult challenges I faced were relocating to the United States at the age of 11 years old. I had to leave everything I knew, my friends and family, culture, language, food, and my religion. Leaving my friends and family was difficult because they were the definition of home sweet home. I associated comfort, care, love, trust, and safety with my family and friends. However, when I moved to the United States of America, I had to leave them all behind. The comfort, love, and safety I felt having my family has stripped away. Shortly after arriving in the United States, I had a new family, who were biologically different from me. I started attending a new school with new friends. Having been raised in an orphanage, I suffered from attachment disorders, which made it difficult to bond with my adoptive parents. The school I went to was not particularly my favorite either because I spent most of my time learning a new language. I was in after school curriculums, which was not fun for me because it kept me isolated from my adoptive parents. Not spending quality time with my new adoptive parents made it difficult for me to connect with them. Another barrier I faced was the food. The food in the United States was highly processed, salty, and greasy, which was not my favorite thing to eat. I missed the ethnic foods I grew up eating. Lastly, I had to give up my religion. My adoptive parents were Protestant Christian, and because of that, I had to attend church with my adoptive parents. Even though life in the United States was monotonous, I had to adapt to my new environment. As an adult, I am restoring my Ethiopian identity. I am involved in Ethiopian communities. For example, I attend the Ethiopian Orthodox Church with my Ethiopian friends. I am learning and improving my cooking skills in ethnic foods. Also, I have gone back in search of my biological siblings and reconnected with them. I now talk to them on the phone and help them in any way I can. As a student, one of the most challenging aspects of going to school is balancing school-work life balance issues. If I were to win this award, I would use it towards paying my winter quarter tuition and buying books. Any gift I win is going to help me improve my grades because I will have more time to study for my exams and complete assignments. Receiving this award would also allow me to practice self-care. Between working and going to school, sleeping, eating, exercising, socializing, is one of my last priorities, which impacts my physical and psychosocial behaviors. If I were to win this award, I would invest more time in myself, which improves my overall wellness. Having time on my hands also means I can volunteer at my church in the childcare ministry, which I find is one of the most fulfilling things I do in life. Overall, any form of aid I receive is going to help me grow tremendously.