Anya Beckford There are three people that have served as key role models in my life -- my mother, my cousin Vivi and my aunt Annmarie.

My mother is a role model to me because of all the things she has been through as a single mother with two kids, making sure that we have what we need such as getting a good education and having food to eat and a roof over our head, in addition to being my best friend. She is very understanding as a parent about boyfriends, parties, "teen stuff" and "girl stuff." Even though she gives me advice as a parent, she still remains my best friend.

My mother had me when she was 18, so she didn't go to college right away. It was very hard for her to get a job that paid a good enough salary to take care of me but she did it. I don't look at this as just a pity story Ð It's a story that makes me want to graduate high school, go straight to college and graduate to get a good job and support my family.

She has not reached her full career potential in her life yet because of the things she had to do to take care of her kids, but she is slowly climbing the ladder.

My cousin Vivi graduated from high school went to DeVry Institute of Technology and has a good job that can pay her bills. She has made it to a successful point in her life and one day I would like to be there with her.

Lastly, my aunt Annmarie is a role model to me because she graduated from high school and is now going to college to study nursing. She just got married but still finds time to study for her career. She, like my mother, is climbing the ladder to successfulness.

My mother is the first key role model in my life because she is strong and nothing can hold her back. My cousin is important to me because she has reached a successful point in her life, and my aunt Annmarie inspires me because she is climbing the ladder of success in the way I one day would love to climb with someone by my side with kids coming later.

As a African American, I see myself trying to help the African American youth in my community, because they often get caught up in selling drugs, having babies at a young age, dropping out of school and ending up in jail. My friends and I try to stay away from these things because we don't want to put ourselves at risk; we want to be able to help those that are selling drugs, having babies at a young age, dropping out of school and ending up in jail. Some people look at me and my friends that want to finish school, go to college and become someone, and confuse us with the group we are trying to help. That is wrong, but it makes me and my friends try even harder to help people that we know who want to change from being on the negative side of the African American youth to the positive.