Ciera Cathey Story - Unwavering Family Support Ciera Cathey: Growing up in Lindon, it was all I knew, I mean I didn't really grow up in the town I grew up out in the country by Pomona Lake. So I didn't really know anybody around where I live so I kind of just stuck to myself and I was outside a lot. I love animals. I used to catch frogs and turtles and I'd always go down to the lake and walk the shore and I was able to roam and do whatever I wanted. I guess you could say it was different than most kids have because my parents just let me run free and then I just came home when it got dark. My parents adopted me in 1996 when I was two going on three. Marilyn Cathey, Ciera's adoptive mother: The first time we met was in a Braum's ice cream store in Emporia. We kind of fell in love with her right at first so it wasn't hard to bring her home. Ciera Cathey: My parents and I are really close. Whenever I get a good grade my mom called everybody in the family and so I'd always have encouragement from them. My mom is my inspiration, she's always told me that you know don't step on anybody's feet, just work hard and do your best and think good things will come to you. When I was younger I was diagnosed with ADHD and I take medication for it, but I had a really hard time when I was a little focusing on things. Not necessarily getting in trouble on purpose but whenever I get bored I'd always find a way to get in trouble no matter what. I don't know how I did it. I had one teacher for second grade that actually was the first one to take this step and realize that I was different, and realized that I wasn't really trying to get in trouble but that I was just didn't have enough to do. So, she she gave me enough to do. She gave me so much enough to do that I remember having to stay in from recess to finish my extra work and so she made sure that I had the tools I needed to reach my potential. Band was definitely a big part of my life. Music was something that I it was my outlet, it was meant everything to me. I'd practice at home, I'd give them little like recitals so I could practice. I did notice a really big difference between small town and going to Topeka. Honestly, I didn't realize I was a different race until I was a sophomore in high school. It was a shock to me that people treated me differently because of my skin color, because you know I grew up with kids that were just like them and they were fine with me. So then, when I got to Topeka it was a lot better, it was a mix and it was diverse and I felt accepted. I don't really distinctly remember them ever saying you're going to college but I could feel it and I wanted to go to college ever since I was little. Don Cathey, Ciera's adoptive father: I think the feeling is today that you're not going to move anywhere without college. When I was growing up, you could get a trade, you could go to work straight out of high school even before you finished high school and that was an accepted norm, everybody did that. You weren't the President of the United States, but you earned a living, you supported a family, you worked 30 years, you got a watch, then you retire. Marilyn Cathey: We saw her potential early on and realized we needed to be sure she went to college no matter what. So yeah, we strived for that and its's happened. Ciera Cathey: If it hadn't been for my parents I would have never had any of the opportunities that I've had today. I'm gonna start crying. No it is, they've, they've worked really hard to get me to where I need to be and they've sacrificed a lot so that I can have a future. In my opinion to be a first-generation college student is that you come into college without knowing what to expect. If you don't have that guidance that students who have parents who went to college or siblings who went to college have, you kind of have to fend for yourself and figure things out pretty quickly. I made some poor decisions but I like to say I'm still here.