Dear Ms. Barbara, Yes, I do like bacon. A lot.

Not only because it is the best breakfast food ever, but also because it was a family tradition on Sunday mornings. I definitely did not grow up like many other kids in Raleigh. I have two older brothers and a younger sister; however, we were all homeschooled. Instead of reading short stories and writing essays, we often went on random and peculiar fieldtrips to tobacco auctions, fish hatcheries, corn mills, and even ostrich farms. Although writing my first paper at a local charter high school was an interesting adventure, I must say that the bonds that I have formed with my siblings over the years when we were homeschooled are more valuable than any sixth grade assignment I would have otherwise spent time on. I was the first sibling in my family to attend a public school before college. By brother Zachery went to NCSU and studied to become a teacher. I laughed so hard when I found out that he would be a public school teacher when he never went to high school in the first place. I consider him the unknown brother because he now lives in Australia with his girlfriend, who may or may not be his wife. My other brother, Tyler, is currently at UNC-CH and is about to graduate from the sports medicine program there. We always spend our summer nights staying up to five in the morning laughing and watching shows on Netflix together in our room. Tria, however, is my best friend. As you can see from the picture, we do not look alike at all and we have completely different interests. She is obsessed with animals and we often take study breaks to sing along to ABBA at the top of our lungs in the living room. Before my senior year in high school, I lived my entire life in a white house in the country outside of Raleigh. Cows and peacocks were common sights on the trek to and from my house to civilization. Now my family lives in a two bedroom apartment in the city. My new living experience was completely different: taking the city bus became normal, commutes were measured in single digits, and I missed the cows. My non-sister best friends are Tess, Kyle, and Sarah, who are the core of my friend group in Raleigh. Every Friday I organize with a group of 15 friends (mostly previous homeschoolers) to go to karaoke, the batting cages, and the art museum. In ninth grade I went to Raleigh Charter in downtown Raleigh and had an amazing experience. While the school was definitely stressful, I became involved in extracurriculars that I was compassionate about, especially Model UN. I really enjoy public speaking, being able to represent a country, and making a difference in the world, at least in committee. Model UN is what sparked my interest for public health after representing South Africa for the World Health Organization. My dream is to work for the CDC in Atlanta and travel to India, combatting infectious diseases and improving slums. I love to travel, despite the fact that I despise taking off in airplanes. I plan on majoring in Biology and German here at UNC-C. I want to attend Johns Hopkins for graduate school in public health and perhaps go to medical school, but only if I want to spend another few years filling my brains hard drive to maximum capacity.

Culture is very important to me. My grandparents are Czech and Serbian and were in concentration camps during WWII as children. After immigrating to America in the 1950s, my grandfather became a tailor and made bratwurst for a living. German culture was always a part of my life, even though I did not begin learning the language until high school. I think not speaking it at home since I was little is my greatest regret. Nevertheless, I believe that you are never too old to learn, so now I am catching up on my German. Last summer I lived in Nuremberg, Bayern for a month and absolutely loved it there. I hope that I am able to live in Germany when I am older for a little bit and am able to get my German citizenship through my grandparents sometime in the near future. I think this letter summarizes my life to some degree and hopefully you will enjoy the random pictures that show other aspects of my life. Other than that, you should know that I love Harry Potter, ticking noises from clocks do not annoy me, plum purple is my favorite color, and I really like your class so far. Sincerely, Heidi Cope