Student Reflection: Yaid Puente

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05/02/2019 Added

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Yaid Puente speaks at the College of Arts and Sciences Celebration of Excellence on April 6, 2019. Puente is a graduating senior majoring in Microbiology with a minor in Biochemistry.

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[00:00:00.659](light piano music)
[00:00:03.260]Hello everyone.
[00:00:04.370]You know, it's kind of funny that one of the hardest
[00:00:06.870]questions I've ever received in my life
[00:00:09.280]is one that any interview tip provider
[00:00:11.440]will let you know that is definitely going to be asked.
[00:00:14.210]Tell me a bit about yourself.
[00:00:16.030]Or my personal favorite, tell me your story.
[00:00:19.200]And that is really why I'm here, to tell you my story.
[00:00:23.650]My name is Yaid Puente and I am
[00:00:25.300]a current senior microbiology major
[00:00:27.300]where in just a few days, I will walk across the stage
[00:00:30.440]and receive my hard-earned diploma,
[00:00:32.830]that diploma that represents a part of the story
[00:00:34.940]that I am going to tell you today.
[00:00:37.200]In order to really tell my story,
[00:00:39.100]I have to go back, way back to the days
[00:00:41.760]where I was just a young whippersnapper.
[00:00:43.725](audience laughs)
[00:00:44.558]I was around five or six, and at this age
[00:00:46.470]it is customary for many grown adults
[00:00:48.440]to ask you the ordinary question,
[00:00:50.630]what do you want to be when you grow up?
[00:00:53.080]And my answer to that question has always contained
[00:00:56.070]the same two components, even to this day.
[00:00:59.440]I want to be a soldier and I want to be a doctor.
[00:01:03.610]Now I really enjoy telling this story because one,
[00:01:06.220]my mom loves to tell it.
[00:01:08.444](audience laughs)
[00:01:09.277]And she loves to tell this story because you see,
[00:01:12.130]neither she or my dad had an opportunity
[00:01:14.300]at receiving an education.
[00:01:16.320]Both being born in Mexico, they were pulled out of school
[00:01:19.040]by the fifth grade in order to be able
[00:01:20.620]to help support their families financially.
[00:01:23.290]To give an example of what their lives looked like
[00:01:26.780]in rural Mexico, my dad did not have the means
[00:01:29.360]to purchase a pair of shoes until he was 16,
[00:01:32.250]and he had to work for them himself.
[00:01:34.770]It is because of sacrifices like these
[00:01:37.100]that give me the motivation
[00:01:38.410]that no matter what the circumstance is,
[00:01:40.160]to continue to work towards an education.
[00:01:42.570]And this is why it was one of the greatest feelings
[00:01:44.700]in the world to be able to tell them
[00:01:46.480]that not only will I be receiving my commission
[00:01:49.260]into the US military in a couple of days,
[00:01:52.110]but that I will also be matriculating
[00:01:54.090]into the Class of 2023 at Uniformed Services University.
[00:01:58.530]But now, back to my story.
[00:02:00.530]At this point, I was a highly motivated kid
[00:02:03.170]that knew what he wanted to be
[00:02:04.740]but absolutely no idea how to get there, or even why.
[00:02:09.760]Then in eighth grade, this wonderful university
[00:02:12.390]came into my life.
[00:02:13.960]As an award recipient for the STARs program,
[00:02:16.450]they had me come to the university and receive this honor,
[00:02:19.160]and from that point forward, I always knew
[00:02:21.900]this was the place where I was gonna end up.
[00:02:24.670]Every postcard they sent me said,
[00:02:27.800]we're excited to see you here,
[00:02:30.090]or even the, you belong at Nebraska.
[00:02:33.540]They had me really hyped to really come to this university.
[00:02:37.390]And so really discovering this university was my how.
[00:02:40.710]Now fast forwarding to the fall of 2015
[00:02:43.090]which was my first semester of my undergraduate journey.
[00:02:46.250]And man oh man, was I in for an experience?
[00:02:48.800]Now, I wouldn't be a millennial
[00:02:50.330]if I didn't reference a meme at some point in this speech.
[00:02:52.834](audience laughs) And so the meme
[00:02:54.070]that really comes to mind is the one with the cartoon dog
[00:02:57.370]where everything is on fire, including the dog himself,
[00:03:01.310]and all that there is in the meme
[00:03:03.940]is a simple dialogue box that says, everything is fine.
[00:03:07.754](audience laughs)
[00:03:08.770]Now, while most people might look at this fire
[00:03:11.860]in their lives as stress and therefore
[00:03:14.100]have a negative connotation associated with it,
[00:03:16.780]I saw it as the heat I needed for growth.
[00:03:20.580]Because, as the saying goes, hindsight is 20/20,
[00:03:23.740]and man, have I grown since my first semester here?
[00:03:27.340]The experiences I have had here at this university
[00:03:29.840]have impacted me in so many ways.
[00:03:32.430]One of the easier ones to talk about
[00:03:33.950]is meeting Mr. Moi Padilla, the new director of NCPA
[00:03:38.080]and one of the biggest role models in my life.
[00:03:40.930]He's taught me so many things about life,
[00:03:42.970]and one of them being how to discover your why.
[00:03:46.980]And my why is simply serving my people.
[00:03:51.180]It is why I describe myself with my actions,
[00:03:53.370]because they speak volumes more
[00:03:54.910]than any words I can say as a servant leader.
[00:03:59.550]Now the people I have been able to interact with
[00:04:01.970]through my time here being an ambassador,
[00:04:04.920]a mentor, a fraternity member, cadet in ROTC,
[00:04:08.570]a vampire, and any other title throughout my college career,
[00:04:11.850]are the reasons why I do what I do.
[00:04:14.020]And yes, you heard me right.
[00:04:15.720]I was a vampire, also known as a phlebotomist.
[00:04:18.756](audience laughs) But, it is all of these
[00:04:20.410]inspirational stories of overcoming adversity,
[00:04:23.180]about dedication to your craft,
[00:04:25.600]that made me want to be a servant leader.
[00:04:29.540]For example, one of my fraternity brothers
[00:04:31.790]who I have mentored was told that at the age of 12,
[00:04:35.690]that by the time he turned 16,
[00:04:38.100]he would no longer be able to walk.
[00:04:41.560]And the doctor went ahead and recommended for him
[00:04:44.290]to go ahead and get a wheelchair
[00:04:45.490]and get used to the life of being in a wheelchair.
[00:04:49.180]And so at that point, he made a decision.
[00:04:52.180]Rather than accepting his fate, he got up and was like,
[00:04:55.670]I'm gonna go and make the most out of these next four years.
[00:04:59.510]So he went out for every single sport.
[00:05:02.060]Football, track, wrestling.
[00:05:04.210]You name it and he did it.
[00:05:06.110]Even made it to state in wrestling.
[00:05:08.470]This same guy is one of the students
[00:05:10.220]that could've walked by you to class this morning.
[00:05:12.400]And yes, you heard me right, walk.
[00:05:15.320]His why is more powerful than the obstacles
[00:05:17.760]that came into his life, and that is truly inspiring.
[00:05:21.980]Nebraska has served as a catalyst
[00:05:23.550]for me to discover the beautiful stories
[00:05:25.990]of those that I have encountered throughout my journey.
[00:05:28.740]And it did so with a special formula.
[00:05:31.530]A formula that, if not included in this speech,
[00:05:33.960]would make Joe D and Eric very sad.
[00:05:36.610]You see, it is a combination of academics
[00:05:39.500]and experiences that lead to opportunities.
[00:05:44.080]For me, it was an opportunity to discover
[00:05:45.880]my passion to be a servant leader.
[00:05:49.040]An opportunity to hear so many inspiring stories.
[00:05:52.730]And so I will leave you with these two pieces of wisdom.
[00:05:57.240]At whatever point you may be in your journey,
[00:05:59.280]continue to search for your why.
[00:06:01.180]And if you found it, then lead with it.
[00:06:04.800]And finally, a quote from an old
[00:06:06.310]Special Forces combat medic.
[00:06:08.070]He once told me, in life, there are only ever
[00:06:11.120]two outcomes from any given situation.
[00:06:14.700]Either you win or you learn.
[00:06:18.120]Always continue to be lifelong learners.
[00:06:20.170]Thank you.
[00:06:21.216](light piano music) (audience applauds)

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Student Reflection: Yaid Puente

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