Aaliyah, 19 years old, TX

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Aaliyah entered foster care at a young age with her twin brother after they were abandoned at a hotel. They were later adopted, but unfortunately, things did not work out in their adoptive home. After spending some time with friends, Aaliyah remained a model student in high school but soon faced the possibility of becoming homeless as a senior. With the help of the McKinney-Vento Act, she has found temporary placement in a group home located 20 miles from her school.

Aaliyah is a young woman who has already experienced more instability than most young adults should have to navigate. She spent part of her childhood in the foster care system and was later adopted, with the hope that adoption would provide the permanent family and stability every child deserves. Unfortunately, that stability did not last. At 17, through no fault of her own, Aaliyah was abandoned by her adoptive parent. Today, she is an independent young adult without a parent or guardian providing the financial and practical safety net that most students rely on as they transition into adulthood. Aaliyah is currently living in a transitional housing facility for youth experiencing homelessness. And yet, she is moving forward. This fall, Aaliyah will attend Missouri Baptist University, where she will pursue her education while also running track for the university. Her athletic ability, dedication, and hard work have already helped her earn a $22,000 annual track scholarship toward the cost of attending. But Aaliyah hasn't stopped there. She worked this summer and saved $1,000 of her own money specifically toward her college expenses. For a young woman currently living in transitional housing and navigating adulthood without financial support from a parent or guardian, saving $1,000 toward college demonstrates just how committed Aaliyah is to making this opportunity a reality. She has earned a $22,000 annual athletic scholarship. She has accessed federal financial aid and other resources available to her. She has worked and saved $1,000 herself. She is preparing to balance the demands of being both a college student and a collegiate athlete. Aaliyah is doing everything within her power to get herself to college. And still, after her athletic scholarship, financial aid, and personal savings are applied, she is facing an approximately $3,000 funding gap for the semester. For many college students, a remaining balance like this might mean calling home and asking a parent for help. Aaliyah doesn't have that call to make. There is no parent or guardian available to cover the difference, provide a financial safety net, or step in when scholarships, financial aid, and her own savings don't quite reach the full cost of attendance. Aaliyah's Big Wish is for $3,000 to close this remaining college funding gap and help her begin her education at Missouri Baptist University. This wish isn't about asking someone else to pay for her education. Aaliyah has already invested in herself. She has earned scholarship dollars through her athletic ability, pursued available financial aid, and worked to contribute her own money. This Big Wish is about closing the final gap between everything Aaliyah has been able to accomplish on her own and the opportunity waiting for her on the other side. What makes Aaliyah's determination so remarkable isn't simply that she wants to attend college. She experienced foster care. She was adopted and then, through no fault of her own, lost the family stability that adoption was supposed to provide. She is currently living in transitional housing for youth experiencing homelessness. And in the middle of all of that, she worked, saved $1,000 for school, earned a $22,000 annual athletic scholarship, and is preparing to become a college student and collegiate athlete. Granting this Big Wish would do more than help pay a college bill. It would give Aaliyah some of the support that other young adults are fortunate enough to receive from family and allow her to focus on classes, track, and building the independent future she has worked so hard to create. It would also send a powerful message to a young woman who has had important sources of stability disappear: You may be building your future independently, but you do not have to build it entirely alone. Aaliyah has worked for this opportunity. She has earned this opportunity. She has invested her own money in this opportunity. Her Big Wish is for help closing the final $3,500 gap so she can take it.