I’ve been to a lot of parties, but I’ve only been to one where I found out I was virtually blind in one eye. When I was about five years old, my brother had a pirate-themed birthday party, and when my mom came to put on my pirate eye patch, I told her to put it over my left eye, because if she put it over my right one, I wouldn’t be able to see. This launched me into years of eye doctor appointments, wearing patches (over my good eye this time), and getting used to glasses…

The day a baby is born is supposed to be the most joyful day of a parent’s life. After hours of labor the baby is cleaned, wrapped in a blanket, and placed on the mother’s chest as the nurses congratulate the happy parents on the incredible feat of bringing a child into the world. However, the day I was born looked nothing like this. The nurse who cleaned me up noticed something in the top of my mouth – or rather, she noticed a lack of something in the top of my mouth…

I’m on the Dean’s List. Again. My planner is usually packed with meticulous notes detailing my various academic goals. My transcript is nearly flawless. But all of this has come at a cost. Each semester, I’ve sacrificed hobbies, fun, and time with my family to achieve my idea of happiness: academic perfection. Despite my best efforts, my high GPA hasn’t improved my happiness; it’s killed it…

You don't need to wait to change the world. Regardless of your major, friend group, or future ambitions, you can have real impact and literally change the world — today! My great uncle and namesake, Captain Robert Alan Rex, was shot down in Laos during the Vietnam War in 1968, leaving a spouse and two children behind. Robert was missing in action for more than 25 years. After her son went missing, my great-grandmother, Pearl Rex, became a champion of abused…

The summer after fourth grade, clinical depression hit me like a heavyweight boxer. My normally vivacious, inquisitive self was knocked out, leaving little Sarah entirely hollow. Anxiety filled the void, a possessive coach whose constant companionship provided nothing but loneliness. After a season of spending recess alone inside and emotionally crashing after school every day, I learned skills to fight my mental illness back…

Driving up to a weathered brown apartment building in South Salt Lake, Khinhla, Win Tae, and their brothers rolled down the windows excitedly as I turned up the music. Shattering the silence, we got out and started dancing to the radio. As if anticipating our arrival, the front doors of the apartments facing us swung open and Burmese refugee mothers smiled as their children darted past to join us…

In 2015, I returned from an LDS Mission in Kobe, Japan and struggled to find meaning in my day-to-day classes and job at Chik-Fil-A. While nuggets and honey mustard were delicious, I wanted to do something that brought about social good. On a particularly busy week, I remember feeling like I really couldn’t make myself fry another chicken patty. My job felt unfulfilling, and I wanted to do more. I promised myself that if I quit - I would find something meaningful to do…

Headed to school on another regular day, I saw first responder vehicles blocking off a whole street near my home. Glancing as I passed, I couldn’t see what had happened, though it had obviously been a fatal accident. As I got to school, the hustle and bustle of class, homework, and friends consumed my attention and I forgot all about the accident— that is, until second period when the school police officer and counselor escorted me from class to the office…

During lunch in middle school and high school there was always the gathering of like-minded groups: those that loved to talk about video games, those that were theater fanatics, and those that were athletes. For one who didn’t fit any of those social constructs, I floated for years hoping one day to be surrounded by people that I can relate with. It was a difficult time for me, but I learned and grew a lot. I started to notice that I had a desire to make the world a better place…

When I walked into an info session for a Ballard Center Social Innovation Case Competition, I had only planned on enjoying a free J Dawg- replete with banana peppers and drizzled with its iconic special sauce - then trekking back to the library to finish my homework. However, as I loitered long enough to not look too much the hot dog opportunist, I got hooked by an opportunity to become involved in an international development project right here on BYU campus…

I’ve always known I wanted to go into healthcare. While the other neighborhood kids were playing army or house, I was playing with the doctor kit that my parents bought me for my birthday. The summer after my freshman year, while my friends started their summer internships I packed up my bags and moved to Sumpango, Guatemala to work as a medical volunteer in a rural clinic. During one rainy, slow afternoon I was putting together posters for an upcoming class on food and hygiene. Almost like a scene out of a movie, a woman burst through the front entrance of the empty clinic and broke the silence. My Spanish did not need to be great to see that something was very wrong with the baby that she was holding in her arms…

It was 2008. My dad, an African immigrant, had won a City Council seat against an incumbent in my Washington State hometown. Dad’s win was revolutionary. For a town that had visible swastika flags in certain neighborhood windows, a black man winning a City Council seat was significant. And yet, after he won, racist hate mail arrived that contained words I will not ever repeat. I saw the letters and, horrified, I asked him why he ran…

I was a barely 16 years old; despite my youth and inexperience, I wanted to change the world. So, I left my home, my family, and my country. I was trained for three days and put on a plane to Nicaragua. I was determined to end poverty, clean up the environment—in short, I was going to change the world. I remember walking through the narrow dirt roads of that small Nicaraguan mountain village…