Chasing Clouds

My Scholarship entry - Survival in the Sky

Dominican Republic | Tuesday, June 18, 2013 | 5 photos

When I was 17, an announcement came over the PA in my small-town Canadian high school. I put down the National Geographic magazine I had been drooling over, and listened intently.

"Attention all students," it said. "If you are interested in volunteering in the Dominican Republic, please come to..." They'd had me at volunteering in the Dominican Republic.

After attending the information meeting, I immediately began saving. At the time, I was working in the kitchen of a grocery store, making 7.85 an hour. By the time I got the news that I had been selected for the trip, I had my 1,300 dollars saved.

As a child, three things defined me: my parent’s camera, school, and the dream of adventure. I did well in school, occasionally borrowed my mom’s Canon, and became obsessed with travelling the world.

I am 23 now. I have just finished school, been on a lot more airplanes, and taken a lot of photos. As a young girl, my mom told me that there was no money in photography, so I never tried to make a career of it. As a young woman, I still want nothing more than to explore, capture, dream, and learn.

This opportunity, like that high school announcement, would truly change my life.