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As you grow and life changes around you, your idea of self identity and who you desire to be changes with it. With age your childhood dreams often seem more and more far fetched, but without them what is there to look forward to? As kids our ideas of what we want to be are so vast and at times change by the hour, or often don't exist (ie. an astronaut garbage man who fights fires in his spare time). Narrowing down that desire to one career instead of an astronaut garbage man is often defined by a moment in our life where we finally connect ourselves with the world around us. This moment happened for me as a kid growing up on the southside of Chicago when I took my first trip downtown. I was born in smalltown USA and spent my first few years in Ohio before moving to Chicago very young. I am the son of a nurse and a pastor whose desire to help those around them knows no bounds. That childhood trip to the city where I saw first hand the disparity between the living situations of those around me on the southside and the luxury highrises of downtown, instilled those same desires to help that my parents showed. As much as it frustrated me to see this disparity, the beautiful architecture of downtown Chicago captivated me in a way I could only describe as the aforementioned defining moment. Right there I knew that I could use this desire to help and fascination with architecture together to create the change that I wanted to see around me. As I write this today, I have finished my undergraduate studies in Interior Design and am actively pursuing my Masters of Architecture. During my undergraduate studies I was tasked with the completion of a capstone project, in which I got to use this fascination of the architectural world and desire for change hand in hand. The project I created was a homeless shelter for the chronically homeless of Rochester, NY where I currently reside and study. The homeless shelter focused on the redesign of an active homeless encampment named Peace Village which serves as a safe haven for the chronically unsheltered of Rochester. The project centered around the reduction of negative stigma surrounding homelessness through community involvement, and the creation of new homeless housing using recycled materials and sustainable building methods. The career path I have chosen allows for this marriage of creativity and community involvement allowing me to fulfill my desire to help those around me. A career as an architect allows me to not only physically change the world around me, but also create social impacts that stretch far beyond the physical structures that I design. As tall or wide or as world renowned as an architectural piece may become, there is no greater impact than the social benefit that can come when creative minds work together to address and solve the multitude of social issues plaguing our world today. With my future in architecture, I hope to address many of these issues and inspire others to do the same.