Born and raised as the oldest, first generation Asian-American in my family, I have lived in Boston my entire life. In the small town of Allston, I live in a sky blue painted house at the end of the street along with my younger brother and parents. My parents could not speak the “native” tongue of the country we resided. And so, with being the oldest American born Chinese in my family, came expectations and responsibilities. As a child, along with learning my times table, I became someone my parents could rely on. I was needed to help translate letters and documents, acted as an interpreter for phone calls and meetings, and helped fill out forms. I knew everything about my family, even how little money my parents had in their bank account. My parents worked long hours with little pay to raise their two children. At an early age, they shoved Reading, English and Math books in our face to make sure we grew up smart so we don’t end up struggling as much as them. Because of this, I was able to grasp a good sense of how the world worked at an age younger than most. My parents put so much love and effort into raising me, that I realized I had to fulfill their expectations by studying hard and finding a good job.
After much preparation, the time for the ISEE exam came along. In the early spring, I was notified that I was accepted into Boston Latin School. Because of the fact that this school could lead to a brighter future, my parents and I were beyond ecstatic. The first thing I did sixie year was join a club called Wolfpack Volunteers. By the end of the school year, I became an officer. Wolfpack Volunteers is a non-profit organization and one of the biggest clubs at Boston Latin. The club finds and organizes volunteering events all around Boston to help out at. Using great effort and time, the club plans big seasonal events to raise money and donate to charities such as Pine Street Inn and Cradles to Crayon. Through being in this club, I learned that I enjoy not only helping out at volunteering events, but helping students find events to volunteer at for hours. After spending a few years with the club, I was given the opportunity to become the President. Through being a part of Wolfpack Volunteers, I met lots of great people and learned many new things.
This club has exposed me to a whole different world and way of viewing things. I wanted to discover other ways to learn about and give back to the community, so I ventured out and joined other organizations. Though these other programs, I was able to learn about my culture and its history, about low income, and affordable housing in the Greater Boston area with Asian Community Development Center. I was able to become a Youth Leader who learned about and discuss various topics that impacted the world. I was able to create PowerPoint presentations and pamphlets for the community about various health related information and resources. I worked with low income families who needed help with food stamps and taxes. I tutored and helped kids with homework afterschool. I was able to learn more about the world, my community, my friends, and myself. However, what I was able to get most out of all these programs is the experience that taught me that there are many issues in the world, but there are many things that I can do to help.
With senior year coming up, I hope to end my Volleyball season well and to graduate high school. In college, I plan on taking various courses in Social Science. While in college, I hope I will be given the opportunity to work as an intern in the Public Service sector. It would also be great if I could study abroad for a semester. I hope that one day I am able to serve people by becoming Senator or even President. But right now, my ultimate goal is to make my parents proud and happy.