I was raised in Refugio, Texas, a small town an hour away from Kingsville, and even though it was small, it did not stop me from having big dreams. Ever since middle school I always wanted to play football. Since then, I have trained hard every day and set goals that I took with me to high school that helped me reach a state title, my first and second year of high school.
Trying to keep the momentum from my sophomore year to my junior year proved to be harder because of Hurricane Harvey. Harvey did some damage to the town and the school facility just as football season was about to begin.
My coaches, teammates and I realized that we needed to fix the facility to have a good season. We could not succeed if we did not have a place to practice. We also realized that we could not just fix the facility and leave the town uncared for. Slowly but surely, we were able to restore the town and the team qualified for state for the third time with the help and support of the town and many from the surrounding areas.
My team fought hard but came up short that season. I gave it my all that season and I could not have done that without the help of my family, coaches, teachers and friends. My efforts did not go unnoticed, I was able to collect big time division one offers throughout my junior year.
No matter how far away the stars seemed to me, I kept reaching. Growing up, I had a lot of trouble believing I could achieve remarkable things. I realized that the only person that can stop me is me. I began to push myself to be better until that was the only thing I could do. I am now achieving everything I set my mind to. No matter how bad Harvey hit, I was still able to go out and help the town. I also helped myself in the process. Life can get hard, but you have the choice to stay where you are or pick yourself up.
