Tuesday, November 23, 2021, is the day that forever changed my life. That morning, as I was waking up in Prague, Nebraska to catch the bus to school, a family member called me unexpectedly. She came over, picked my brother and me up, and told us the worst words I could ever imagine: that our mom was killed in a car accident in Omaha early that morning. Our mom was 37 years old and had been working as a newspaper delivery driver for the Omaha World Herald. A car ran a red light at an intersection and collided with the car she was riding in. She died at the scene, and the person who caused the accident has never been found.
The accident changed my life in an instant. We had to move out of our house in Prague, move in with our dad in Omaha, into a one-bedroom apartment, and leave our high school, dogs, friends, and everything else behind. The transition was totally sudden, shocking, and outside of my control.
I am in my final semester at Burke High School in Omaha. Burke is actually the third high school I have attended. I started at Westside High School, also in Omaha, during the 2020 COVID-19 lockdowns when classes were conducted virtually. When we moved to Prague in 2021, I had to transfer to East Butler High School. It took time to make new friends and adjust to attending high school in-person. Just as I started to get comfortable at East Butler, the accident happened, and I had to transfer again.
In the two years since the accident, I have had to work part-time, up to about 34 hours per week during the school year, at an ice cream shop and daycare near my home. At the ice cream shop, I am a shift lead and am fully responsible for running the store independently. I enjoy this leadership position and am given more and more responsibilities by the store owner. At the daycare, I care for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers.
I am planning to study psychology at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. After obtaining my bachelor’s degree, I plan to continue my education and obtain a master’s or doctorate degree in social work or counseling. Then, once licensed, my goal is to provide to others the same solace that my own physical and mental healthcare providers have provided to me.
My mom died without any life insurance coverage. As our family’s primary provider, we were planning that she would continue to provide a large part of my financial support during college. Without her support and without life insurance, I have had to devote most of my free time to working my two part-time jobs. During college, that will continue, and I will have to continue to work to afford tuition and life necessities. In short, my mom’s death without life insurance has caused me to divert much of my time and attention to working instead of studying.