Emily became an avid reader and artist while attending kindergarten. Her favorite pastime was to pursue her passion and interest in international cultures.

Emily’s favorite place to ‘play’ and learn was the public library. She spent as much time there as she could while she studied her daily assignments, prepared for tests and enjoyed her favorite past time, reading.

Emily’s reading endeavors began with mystical writings. Author JK Rowling’s series is her favorite. Emily developed an interest in many foreign languages. The first of which is Japanese. Emily enjoys the writings of a Japanese comic book style called ‘Manga’.

“Manga” are comics created in Japan or by Japanese creators in the Japanese language, conforming to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century. The medium includes works in a broad range of genres: action-adventure, romance, sports and games, historical drama, comedy, science fiction and fantasy, mystery, suspense, detective, horror, and business/commerce, among others. In addition to learning the Japanese language, this form of artistic works permitted Emily to study a broad range of subjects as well.

Manga is written in Japanese, and it is how Emily taught herself the beautifully artistic language of Japanese.

As her thirst for knowledge continued, Emily decided to explore other languages. She chose Greek as she was fascinated with the arts and culture of Greece. She also studied Spanish and officially took classes during Middle School. Emily consistently read an additional 2-3 book per week, in conjunction with her regular assignments. She immediately became fluent in Spanish, but studied Japanese with the same passion.

Although Emily’s past time was not supported by many of her classmates during elementary and junior high, she continued her pursuit of foreign culture. She was exposed to bullying her entire junior high career for being “different”. Not being the typical teenager, her interests rose above fashion and the latest celebrity gossip.

Emily’s only interest was how much more could she learn.

Because of her passion to succeed, Emily was enrolled into Fort Hayes Metropolitan High to achieve an advanced education and to gain exposure to children whose interests closely matched her as well. While enrolled at Fort Hayes Metropolitan High school, Emily quickly exceeded the expectations of her Japanese teacher.

Emily’s passion for Japanese, for being a good student and achieving good grades, has earned Emily the opportunity to travel to Japan, from June 13 – July 3rd, 2014, along with eight of her classmates. Since her 18th birthday occurs during this timeframe, she’s very excited and hopeful to be able to celebrate this milestone in her life studying abroad.

My goal for this fundraiser to make sure her dream comes true. I don’t usually ask for help for myself. Please remember, it’s not for me. Your generosity is for my baby who God has blessed me with, and I thank you for your kindness. Thank you for reading, and I hope to hear from (and thank) you really soon!