Competition: SkillsUSA Nationals Atlanta, Georgia

Hi, my name is Olivia and my team and I have gotten so lucky to have been able to participate in SkillsUSA. The team and I won gold in the Maine states SkillsUSA competition in March. We are so thankful to have had this amazing opportunity to help out communities that are in such need do to the awfully high amounts of poverty in our area; 12.4 percent of the population is living at or below the poverty line just in my county, this is around 2,500 kids living in poverty. With all of this information that the team and I gathered, we started a Spring Refresh Drive in December. We were able to raise around $400 for our local shelter and over $600 in children’s clothing and toys for our local community closet. Back on the topic of SkillsUSA; Nationals is held in Atlanta, Georgia this year in June. You may think that “wow $2,300 is a lot to go to some competition!” And yes, it is, but you have to think about the coast of things just being able to stay in the American Hotel is going to be $216 per night and we are going to be staying there 7 nights. It is also costing us $300 just to get a pass to be able to get into the arena where we are going to be competing for four days, going to briefings, and ceremonies. And this $2,300 is not even coverings the coast of food that I need to be eating all week or extra expenses I might need during the trip. Where I also unfortunately live in poverty myself, having to pay for other expensive things like bills to help out my dad where my mom has passed away and he is retired; I am the only income coming in our household and working a part time job during school in barely brining in enough money to cover them, not even to mention the ridiculous amount of Senior costs I’ve had to pay during my senior year of high school and this isn’t even counting money needed for our senior trip, graduation, a graduation party, ext. I would hate to have to disappoint myself, my team, and my CTE school for not being able to go to this amazing once and a lifetime opportunity. We have made it this far already and I am not going to let poverty ruin another thing in our lives. And to continue our work on our Spring Refresh drive, if I am to go over my goal of $2,300; the remainder of the money will go to back to our local community closet and homeless shelter. So if you are able to donate, please do, you have not idea what even $1 would mean to me. Thank you.