On behalf of the University of Akron and the Darah Farris Scholarship, we are proud to announce our first scholarship recipient.  She is a young woman with a driven mind and a kind heart.  We know that Darah would be so proud to be able to contribute to educating people in her community who will go on to do great things in their fields.  The ripple effect of Darah’s passions and spirit will never cease as long as we are able to provide scholarship assistance to driven young Akronites.  The following is an essay written by Natalie Anderson, the first Darah Farris Scholarship Recipient.       

            As a fellow Elms girl I understand the importance of a good education and leadership skills. Attending Our Lady of the Elms and now the University of Akron, I see how valuable these two assets are. I strive to be the best possible student I can be, and I know that The University of Akron will help me continue this. Over my four years at Our Lady of the Elms I have learned time management, leadership, equality, confidence, and many other skills. I am a well-rounded student as well as an athlete. At the Elms I participated in varsity soccer all four years, bowling all four years, and varsity softball all four years. I love being part of a family and community. My teammates are my family. We rely on each other for anything and everything.

            As I head into my freshman year at Akron I am majoring in Nursing. I know that this is not and Early Education major or a major in Social Work, which Darah was involved in. However, the two share some of the same ideas. I want to become a pediatric nurse or a neonatal nurse. I love working with children, I always have. As long as I can remember I have wanted to become a nurse. I love helping others and making a difference in their lives. Miss Farris taught inner city children and altered their lives. Her career as a teacher improved many of their lives in the simplest way. As a nurse I would be doing much of the same thing. Helping children who are sick and injured would be changing their lives. Not only would I be changing their lives they would be changing mine. My older sister just graduated and has been working at Barberton Hospital. She comes home every day with stories about the children on her floor. How much they mean to her and how wonderful they are. I truly love being around young children. They bring so much joy and happiness to my life.

            This scholarship would mean the world to me. To be recognized by another Elms family who had a daughter with the same interests as me would be so special. My family is composed of me and my three sisters. We have all attended the Elms for high school. I just graduated on Friday. My youngest sister is going to be a junior next year. She served at Darah’s memorial service at the Elms. My two older sisters attend The University of Akron. My oldest sister just graduated from the Nursing College this year. My other sister is going into her third year at Akron. With all of us attending private high schools and my parents now having two in college, this scholarship would help me take a little weight off of their shoulders. Being able to contribute some aid to them would make me feel a whole lot better. Since my education is so important to them as well as me I would greatly appreciate this scholarship.  I want to thank you for this opportunity and for your time.