I grew up in a very liberal family and was the first person in my family to join the military. My mother has always been my principal inspiration. She was a Michigan State District Attorney who passed away when I was seven years old. She taught me to be courageous and to never back down from a bully. When 9/11 happened, I concluded that, while I certainly did not know all the details leading up to the attacks, the world was changing in a way that threatened Americans, so I was willing to do my part to protect the nation. I joined the Army in 2002 and reported for duty in 2003. I deployed to Iraq in 2008 as a Logistics Officer. After the deployment, I applied for an exclusive program called \”Funded Legal Education\”, whereby the Army pays for a soldier (with a Bachelors degree) to attend law school in exchange for an extended commitment in the Judge Advocate General\’s Corps. Before I could complete Bar certification, I was diagnosed with chronic pneumonia due to a growth in my lung resulting from contamination during my deployment. I had surgery extracting the portion of my lung that had the blockage and was subsequently medically discharged. In order to get my legal career back on track, I enrolled in an LL.M. Program at the University of Miami. I will graduate from this program in May 2017.
Losing my lung and my career in the military was devastating. However, I believe that my future is bright because of my advanced education and networking opportunities derived from that education. Thank you for your consideration.
