I hope to make a positive, productive contribution, as cheesy as that may sound.

I had seen people who had lost everything and everyone they loved to war, famine, and natural disasters.

I hope telling stories though 'Making a Difference' - as in my academic work and nonprofit work - will help me to live my grandmother's adage of 'Life is not about what happens to you, but about what you do with what happens to you.'

Determination gets you a long way.

I have never thought of my life as being an enigma.

That's who my mom is. She's a listener and a doer. She's a woman driven by compassion, by faith, by a fierce sense of justice and a heart full of love. So, this November, I'm voting for a woman who is my role model, as a mother, and as an advocate. A woman who has spent her entire life fighting for families and children.

I'm really grateful I grew up in a house in which media literacy was a survival skill.

What inspires me most are people who imagine and implement solutions to challenges in their own lives, in their communities, in our country and around the world.

I want to be the best daughter and wife and friend and person I can be. And I want to help empower the people around me to be the best they can be.