I was born and raised in Cameroon, Central Africa, and I am the eighth born child of fifteen children. After being diagnosed with polio at the tender age of six, I was left paralyzed in both of my legs, resulting in the inability to walk for the rest of my life. I lost my best friend and primary support system, my father, shortly after. Following the loss of my father, I was forced to confront the harsh realities of life and human nature. I realized that I would always have to deal with the limited and discouraging expectations that those in my environment would impose upon me based on their lack of education and exposure. Although I was growing up in a society that was not conducive to or considerate of its disabled population, I decided not to allow my disability or the opinions of others to psychologically handicap my will power or my ability to pursue my dreams. I was forced to become resourceful.Time, trial and error, and memories of my father’s work ethic and accomplishments allowed me to hone an industrious spirit and solution orientated mentality. I took a chance and founded an importing and exporting business that would transfer goods from my native country of Cameroon to neighboring Nigeria by boat. The business allowed me the opportunity to satisfy my call to serve by providing jobs and support to those in within my community. The company was successful, and I was eventually able to fund my dream to travel to America. Upon my arrival to the United States, I was presented with the opportunity to be a contributor to The Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990. I also founded a Non Profit Organization, “Not Cool” (sponsored by Kilpatrick and Sandtown Attorneys). “Not Cool” was an educational platform that campaigned against the tobacco industry and sought to prevent the next generation from perpetuating habitual substance abuse. I held classes at the YMCA to speak to children and parents about the dangers of substance abuse and shared methods to identify the root cause of their desires to indulge, counteract those desires with healthy antidotes, only to inevitably un-popularize the idea of drug usage. These experiences solidified a very important principle that I’ve internalized all through out my life: there is power in every relationship.Whether they serve to be temporary of permanent, the relationships you maintain can dictate the direction of your life. No man is an island; and the quality of the relationships that we nurture can be helpful or detrimental to our development. We all possess the power of influence, and its ultimately up to each of us to make sure that we are leaving a positive impact on as many people as possible as best as we can. From my own experience, I’ve seen how positive influences have kept me encouraged, motivated, and even opened doors for me despite all odds. If given the opportunity, I will use my resources to do the same for those in my community, as I have done in the past.