Alexandra Crocker, 2021 Significant Challenge College Scholarship Honorable Mention Recipient
Alexandra Crocker from Farmingdale, New Jersey, is this year’s Honorable Mention Recipient of the 2021 Significant Challenge College Scholarship. As an accomplished individual with a challenging past, she has overcome her struggles to take action and build the support system she lacked in her early years while dealing with her chronic illnesses.
From her early childhood, Alexandra faced the effects of endless doctor visits and a difficult diagnosis. She found herself missing out on building memories throughout her school years. Without any friends who understood the experience of living with a chronic illness, Alexandra felt disconnected from her peers. In her award winning essay, Alexandra shares, “I just wanted to go and be able to learn, and to maximize my education and social life.”
After realizing there were no established programs to connect children like her, she dedicated her time to build a support system for others who were in search of acceptance and encouragement throughout their health journey. From this deep-willed mission to transform the lives of families like hers, Fighting H.A.R.D was born to “provide physical, emotional, social, and financial help to families of children impacted by rare diseases and chronic illnesses.” Starting up her own non-profit was not easy, but Alexandra was devoted to making it happen. She writes, “I pushed forward full steam ahead, setting up fundraisers, building social media platforms, and reaching out to as many families as I could to spread the word.”
Alexandra continues to find opportunities to get involved, from her participation in cross-country and track teams to her membership in Key Club and the Science League. Her teacher shares that she is “widely respected in our school, community, and state… [as she] voraciously pursues every endeavor with an impressive dedication to excellence.”
Richie’s Spirit Foundation congratulates Alexandra Crocker and wishes her the best at Franklin & Marshall College in the Fall!