I've always been a firm believer in the "Pay It Forward" mentality. I realized early on in my life that I wanted a career that allowed me to give back—aspiring to be just like my mother, Cheryl. Instead of choosing nursing, I decided to go into the field of education. I believe that fields such as medicine and education allow for the beautiful opportunity to touch millions of lives every day and I knew that I wanted to be involved in this amazing endeavor. I hope to one day look back at my life, as I have retired on a beach somewhere and opened my own diner, to see that I’ve been a teacher of not just English—but life, coached basketball—maybe with Coach K from Duke, given all I had left to give to this world and had lived my life to fullest, fearlessly.