Meet the 2022 Scholars

"2022 marks the 30th anniversary of the AbbVie CF Scholarship. As we celebrate this milestone, we look forward to continuing to recognize more students pursing their educational goals. Please share your future ambitions in the Cystic Fibrosis community, professionally and personally."

I will be attending Middlebury College in the fall as a biology major, with a focus on the Pre-Med track. After attaining an undergraduate degree, I hope to attend medical school not only because of the interest I have in healthcare, but also because of the influence my healthcare providers have had on me during my journey with Cystic Fibrosis. I have begun to realize how fortunate I am to live in a time where so many life saving medications are being released. The time that I have spent in a health care setting has inspired me to go into medicine and give back to the community that has given me so much over the years. I have profound gratitude for the potential of fulfilling my goals of going to school with the hopes of entering the medical field with Cystic Fibrosis. I have wanted to go into the medical field since I can remember, and I am very fortunate to have been given this opportunity. I likely would not have been able to accomplish these aspirations without the life saving medication provided by all of the incredible researchers and healthcare professionals who have dedicated their lives to curing this disease. The generosity of this scholarship will allow me to complete the years of schooling that are required to complete my education in hopes of entering the medical field, and hopefully have the opportunity to give back to the community that has made such a monumental difference in my life. Though it may seem cliché, I honestly believe that I would not be the same person I am today without Cystic Fibrosis being a part of my life. I believe that the ability to have connections with those living through the same challenges is vastly more attainable than ever before. Personally, I hope to see a continuation in the accessibility of these connections, as I believe that having the ability to hear the stories of others on the same journey as you is an integral part of fighting Cystic Fibrosis. Cystic Fibrosis is isolating in the sense that many patients feel as though they have support from their friends, family, and medical team, few people in their lives can genuinely understand the challenges of what it’s really like to grow up with and live with CF. An often overlooked aspect of Cystic Fibrosis that I hope to raise awareness of and bring attention to in the community are the emotional demands of the disease. With Cystic Fibrosis comes a constant influx of changes, disappointments, and lifestyle adjustments, which can often take an invisible toll on patients, leaving the emotional wellbeing of many in the Cystic Fibrosis community infrequently addressed. I hope to see a community where this aspect of Cystic Fibrosis is equally identified and understood, and I hope to raise awareness for this often overlooked aspect of the disease, as well as participate in the advocacy of finally finding a cure for CF.