Sometimes I think that my life is actually pretty boring, so coming up with one central aspect of my life to write my bio about was a process to say the least. I’m not really that full of surprises, I guess. I eventually thought back to an event in my life that has pretty much defined it for the past three-ish years. If it makes you sad, I apologize in advance. It makes me sad too. On February 16th, 2019, my mom passed away suddenly from a rare heart condition that she had battled for the past 16 years of her life. This loss shook me and my family to our core; while we were well aware of my mom’s condition, no one ever thought it would take her life so prematurely. Needless to say, the loss of my mom had a profound effect on me and still does. For that first year, it took a lot out of me to get out of bed in the morning and take on the day, but I knew I needed to keep fighting to honor my mom’s memory. If she could fight as hard as she did to raise a family with her condition, then surely I could find the strength to carry on. So far, and I know there’s still a long way to go, I think I’ve done just that. I strive to honor my mom every day by showing the same tenacity that she did, and I know her memory will never leave me.