Ilhaam Ali

I am currently an undergraduate student at the University of Texas at Dallas. My current major is Chemistry, but I plan on going into the healthcare administration field. Ever since I can remember, I have always been interested in healthcare. Visits to my grandparent's village home in the remote northeastern part of Kenya, bordering Somalia, and subsequent visits to the poorer sections of Cleveland, Ohio, and Houston, Texas, have influenced me to pursue a career in poverty eradication and healthcare access. In particular, I am keen on dedicating my life to helping children and the elderly. Throughout high school, I had a job as a babysitter which gave me an opportunity to understand the needs of children. I sought opportunities to volunteer at the elementary schools in Katy area and I always came back from these experiences fulfilled. I also worked at a nursing home, keeping elderly residents company, reading to them, feeding them and organizing their group activities. This experience has been personally helpful to me as I have gained some skills that are helping me with my elderly grandmother who has since moved in with us. I have volunteered on a number of occasions with Rebuilding Together Houston, a charitable organization that helps poor elderly fix their homes. There is nothing like seeing the face of the elderly woman who finally got a wheelchair ramp. It used to take her half an hour to get into her home and following the renovation, it now takes her seconds. I intend to continue working with this organization in the future. One of my proudest moments was helping raise 40,000 dollars to buy a wheelchair accessible van for a new refugee family with three children that have degenerative diseases.