"When I was four years old, I attended my first auction. The auctioneer had a big smile on his face and appeared to genuinely love his job. Intrigued, I thought I might love it, too, and I decided then and there to become an auctioneer.

"I always wanted to follow in my grandfather's footsteps and be a farmer. Growing up on the family farm brought a sense of purpose and passion for taking care of the land and animals. Taking care of something that would take care of others brought me a great deal of joy.

“I'm a registered veterinary nurse in emergency and critical care at the Kansas State Veterinary Health Center. I closely monitor intensive pre- and post-operative surgical cases, critical internal medicine cases, and also triage emergency cases that come in. What I love most about what I do is when a critical patient, who at one time we worried wouldn't make it, starts feeling better and can be discharged.

"As a kid I wanted to be a veterinarian. I was always bringing home stray cats and we also had dogs, rodents, reptiles, and rabbits, so I was familiar with a lot of species and was always intrigued by their different needs and personalities.