To the editor:

I have grown up in Mehlville and I will graduate from Oakville Senior High in the year 2020. Mehlville is my home and it is a large part of who I am today.

Third grade was a tough year for me, but a reading specialist at Oakville Elementary, Mrs. Erb, worked with me to increase my reading skills. She is the reason third grade went from a tough year to a good year.

In fifth grade, I participated in track and field and cross country. I didn’t win medals and it wasn’t easy then, but today I couldn’t be prouder of my 10-year-old self.

I learned how to work hard even when I knew I wasn’t the best at something. Track and field and cross country gave me perseverance. I competed in math at Academic Olympics for three years, and every year I would tell myself that next year I would be up on the stage. I would spend the following year working my hardest to become better at math.

Even though I never won a medal in Mehlville, Academic Olympics gave me the confidence to compete and receive state recognition from Duke University.

It breaks my heart to know that my younger sister won’t have the same opportunities and experiences I did.

I want all Mehlville students to be able to say that Mehlville made them who they are. I want them to feel like they are better for being in the Mehlville School District, because I know I am.

Please be my voice on Election Day and vote “yes” on Prop R on Nov. 3.