Scholarship Spotlight Spring 2009 - Ohlone College Foundation
Ashley Valenzuala
- Cargill & Ohlone College Foundation Scholarship
“I want to inspire greatness in a special group of young women, and in order to do that at the level I want to, a college education is mandatory.”
John C. Maxwell, author of the book, Talent is Never Enough, wrote that the old saying is true: “Find something you like to do so much that you’d gladly do it for nothing, and if you learn to do it well, someday people will be happy to pay you for it.” Nowadays, we are taught doing something you like to do is nice, but doing something you can stand while making a lot of money is better. Thus, we tend to lean towards materialistic views when making choices in our lives. I have chose to pursue a college degree because of one reason only, basketball. I didn’t know then how in love I would fall with this sport, and even if I did I don’t think I would have caught myself.
At the age of nine I was diagnosed with Papillary Thyroid Cancer a curable kind of cancer common in people in their 30s and 40s. When my parents told me I had cancer I was in the 5th grade. I had my surgery that summer – it was supposed to last five hours but turned into an eleven hour marathon; a successful thyroidectomy, countless radiation treatments and medication.
I continued to play basketball as a four-year letterman in high school and a member of Ohlone’s undefeated Renegades – even though I was unable to play my senior year because I had noticed I had problems breathing while doing sprints and many other types of running drills. I went to the doctor who benched me for medical reasons. It seemed that the vocal cord that was paralyzed from my first surgery, all those years ago, had moved over enough to block my airway, preventing me from playing the sport I loved. After a procedure that opened my airway, I was able to play again and I found a home at Ohlone, the team helped me come back from a difficult procedure and time in my life. I had put basketball on the back burner, almost letting the flame die out.
I am pursuing my college degree because of a game – because without this game, I am not sure I could have made it this far. I want to give back to the basketball community that has shaped my life. I want to Coach. I want to inspire greatness in a special group of young women, and in order to do that at the level I want to, a college education is mandatory. People say that I should rethink my dreams because there isn’t a lot of financial stability in being coach, but all the money in the world isn’t worth much if you’re not happy with how you’re making it, or if you’re not making a difference. A college education will allow me the opportunity to make a difference, to give back to the basketball community that saved my life.
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