I Have the Opportunity to go to College and Pursue My Goals; It is my Obligation to Give Back to My Community in Order to Help Others Pursue Their Goals as Well

Idia is a member of the Young Women of Color Leadership Council.

Ella Fitzgerald once said, “Just don’t give up trying to do what you really want to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don’t think you can go wrong.” My name is Idia and I am 20 years old, born and raised in Chicago, Illinois. I am currently a Junior at Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia, majoring in Comparative Women’s Studies/Pre-Medicine, and I have used this quote as a way to live my life everyday with the hopes of one day obtaining a degree in medicine so that I can do my part to help stop the spread of HIV/AIDS.

At an early age, I knew I wanted to be a doctor, primarily because I thought that it would impress other people. When I was 11 years old, my mother lost her battle with a medical illness, and the idea of becoming a doctor solidified in my mind. There were times when I wanted to help my mother, but I could not. Seeing what my mother went through as she eventually lost her battle with her illness led me to the decision that I didn’t want other families of terminally ill patients, especially the children, to go through what my sister and I went through, so I decided that pursuing higher education and attending medical school would be my way to give back to my community, and eventually communities around the world.  Growing up on the South side of Chicago, I know what it is like to constantly be told that my dreams were just that, dreams. Instead of going to my neighborhood high school, where pregnancy and STI rates were high, and motivation to go to college was low, I traveled almost 2 hours every morning to attend Whitney M. Young High School, one of the best schools in the country. Like many of the girls in my neighborhood, I could have just as easily become pregnant, become infected with STIs or even HIV, so I don’t consider myself any better than them. I know that what helped me get past all of those obstacles was my sincere drive, dedication, and passion to get to a point where I could help young girls possibly headed in that direction. Now, instead of avoiding schools that aren’t a parent’s first choice, I want to go into them and be a source of information, especially when dealing with HIV/AIDS, STI, and pregnancy prevention. I want to let the world know that the more we, as a society, ignore the fact that HIV and teen pregnancy are real, the more harm will be done to future generations.

One area that is highly important to me is service to the community.  I feel that, because I have the opportunity to go to college and pursue my goals, it is my obligation to give back to my community in order to help others pursue their goals as well.  Although I am not yet a doctor, I believe that I can still do my part to educate members in my community about health related issues.  I am committed to giving back to my community, which is why I have made community service a very important part of my life. I am a member of the local Young Women’s Leadership Council (YWLC) of Helping Our Teen Girls In Real Life Situations, also known as HOTGIRLS, Inc.  HOTGIRLS is a small, volunteer-led nonprofit organization that is dedicated to promoting the health and well-being of black young women and girls by providing a fun, girl-friendly, nonjudgmental, supportive, and empowering environment for young women and girls to learn about health and social justice issues that affect their lives.  As a member of the HOTGIRLS, my duty is to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS and provide information on HIV/AIDS prevention and other sexual health and social justice issues to students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and other youth residing in the Atlanta metropolitan area.  In addition to HOTGIRLS, I am also a recurring volunteer at various hospitals in Chicago, including La Rabida Children’s Hospital and the University of Chicago Children’s Hospital.

As a member of HOTGIRLS, I was given the honor of being selected to serve on Advocates for Youth’s National Young Women of Color Leadership Council (YWOCLC).  YWOCLC is the perfect outlet for me to help spread awareness about HIV/AIDS.  I feel that, because there is currently no cure for HIV/AIDS, prevention is the next best thing.  HIV/AIDS is affecting African American females at alarming rates, and I feel that, because it is affecting my sisters, it’s affecting me, and therefore it is my job to help stop the spread of HIV.