My motto has always been, “I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. And I will not let what I cannot do interfere with what I can do.” By Edward Everett Hale.
In order to educate students on heart health, I have developed and taught my school program “The Three E’s” to over 8,000 students in elementary, middle and high schools. The education revolves around living a heart healthy lifestyle though proper eating, exercise and controlling emotions. Understanding the affects of all three components can help an individual live a more holistically balanced lifestyle. At one school appearance I had a young girl approach me at the end of my presentation and said, “Thanks for being my hero, I have a heart condition too and now when I go to the doctors I won’t be scared because I will think of you and know that if you made it though, so can I.”
As my eyes filled up with tears, I embraced her with a huge hug before she ran off to class. I may not be able to accumulate every life, rally every student or modify everyone’s habits, but seeing how my platform unswervingly affected one individual and optimistically impacted her makes all the work worthwhile.
Over the past few months I have been involved in various service projects other than just my platform topic. From Race For The Cure, a can food drive, speaking in schools, helping out various civic organizations and even picking rocks out of a field for a farm; each volunteer opportunity has truly made me a better person.
The community service work that I have done has forever changed my life. It’s funny how in community service the individual being served often says repetitively “Thank you” after receiving help, services or support. However, I believe that that word “Thank you” becomes a two way street though community service. Both giver and receiver are impacted and changed. We only have one life, and I firmly believe that we are not called to see through each other, but to see each other through.
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