My name is Jasmin Hernandez and I was born in a town called Ventura.

I do not
remember this place much, but it is near the coast of California. Although I would like to call this
place my home, I cannot do so. Home to me is a small town located in Central California, where
it reaches over 100 degrees during summer. This location is called Merced.

My life in Merced started greatly. I was living my best life. When I turned two, I met my
friend Ashley. Her family would always get into arguments, but that did not affect my family or
our friendship, at least that’s what I thought. One day when her family was arguing, her mother
decided to tell her husband that their son was not his but my dad's. This caused her father to
become angry with him. He was so mad he even threatened to kill us and for the longest time I
would be scared to walk out of my house or even look out the window; unfortunately, our
friendship could not continue and it hurt me in every way possible.

Overcoming her loss and my fear of dying was hard, but I did it and it was great, but that
also came with consequences. I became careless and my grades decreased. When COVID hit, it
worsened. I was failing during my first two years of high school, but once my junior year hit, I
decided to get myself together, and just like that I improved. I went from C’s to A’s. I even
managed to assume a leadership role. I became FFA’s 23/24 chapter secretary and having this
position has improved me in so many ways I did not know I could.

Although living in fear is something that no one should experience, I am glad that I went
through that. It made me realize that I can accomplish more than I thought, and that no matter
how much life decides to throw a boulder at me, I can get back up stronger and smarter.

Questions:

1. Describe an example of your leadership experience in which you have positively

influenced others, helped resolve disputes, or contributed to group efforts over
time. As a chapter officer this year I am enrolled in the AG leadership class.
This class always has us working in groups. We have monthly meetings
where we are required to lead others and work together.
2. What would you say is your greatest talent or skill? Have you developed and
 demonstrated that talent over time? My greatest talent or skill would be public
speaking. Over these past few months is my Ag leadership class we have had
to present in front of everyone and recently we held a workshop at the
Merced County Fairgrounds where we had to speak loudly and keep people
engaged. I have come to love this because I am no longer as afraid to speak
up and talk in front of others.
3. What have you done to make your school or your community a better place? In
the month of October 2023 I was given the opportunity to go to the
fairground and teach 3rd graders about agriculture and the many types of
opportunities they have in the industry. We were able to give them hands-on
experience and most were able to retain some facts about some of the crops
we told them about. A lot of them really enjoyed what we talked about and
many seemed like they were interested in joining the organization.
4. Describe how you have taken on a significant educational opportunity or worked
to overcome an educational barrier you have faced. When Covid hit I was
slacking and this caused my grades to go down. I was always a visual learner
so not being in school was hard for me. When we finally came back I was still
not on top of it. I was still slacking and didn’t want to do any of the work. I
finally decided to get myself together halfway through my sophomore year
because FFA showed me that there were so many opportunities and not only
in agriculture but in other places. I also really wanted to attend more
leadership conferences and field trips. So I started working on raising my
grades one at a time and then stayed on track and not procrastinate as much.