RESTORED WOMEN FOUNDATION

After co-founding the Restored Women Foundation, my mother and I have strived to bring life-changing resources to victims of domestic violence in Central Florida. More than $15,000 in technical education scholarships have been donated to women that have endured domestic violence, in order for them to create a new future for themselves and their children. 

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One of the largest projects I directed through the foundation was the Christmas Toy Giveaway in 2016. I learned many organizational and leadership skills, since I was responsible for going to businesses and requesting toy donations, gathering all the donations, and organizing them on the day of the event. This took place at Plaza del Sol, a shopping mall in Kissimmee where underrepresented and underserved families were invited to attend and get a Christmas donation for their children. Over 100 children received toys that day, and I learned that I shouldn’t take anything for granted, and to be grateful for what I already have.

I gained experience talking to the children and playing with them, which prepared me for future jobs working with children as a tutor and behavioral therapist. I learned how to interact with them by creating engaging and entertaining conversations, and by giving them an opportunity to talk about their interests, life at school, and hobbies. I also learned how to read their body language, which helped me discern when a child is feeling happy, uncomfortable, frustrated, etc.

During this activity, there were a few children who quietly sat by themselves, not engaging in the activities available to them. I approached them and initiated conversations about their favorite video games, toys, movies, and other topics that they were interested in talking about until they seemed more open and comfortable in this setting. This experience taught me different approaches I can use when interacting with a child that may appear shy or quiet.

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My experiences at this event inspired me to want to keep working with children, therefore I sought employment as an academic tutor, and later on I became a behavioral therapist for children younger than 10 years old. These experiences made me realize that I have a strong interest in working as a pediatric neurologist, or perhaps a developmental pediatrician. My first time interacting with kids was at the Christmas giveaway, therefore I consider this to be a pivotal experience in my career, since it helped me realize that this is what I want to do for the rest of my life.