Millard West High School senior receives D.J.'s Hero Scholarship Award
Ella Amaro, a senior at Millard West, is one of 16 recipients of the D.J.'s Hero Scholarship Award
Ella Amaro, a senior at Millard West, is one of 16 recipients of the D.J.'s Hero Scholarship Award
Ella Amaro, a senior at Millard West, is one of 16 recipients of the D.J.'s Hero Scholarship Award
Ella Amaro, a Millard West senior, is one of the 16 recipients of this year's $12,000 D.J.’s Hero Awards Scholarships. The Salvation Army D.J.’s Hero Awards Program is named in memory of D.J. Sokol, who lost his battle with cancer in 1999 at age 18.
"It was really nice being able to tell her that I got something that can help me go to college," Amaro said.
"I’ve been part of the teammates since I was in 4th grade. My teammate is Megan and she told me she nominated me and then, when she found out I got it, she called me crying and she was like, 'I'm so proud of you, you deserve all this,'" Amaro said.
The award is given to seniors who have overcome adversity and show outstanding leadership qualities within the community.
Amaro has battled adversity all her life, from the foster care system as a child to her father being arrested.
"I was mostly just sad and mad because I was like, he was my best friend. How could he do this to our family? He was always about no one gets left behind, family comes first, and he was the one who messed it all up," Amaro said.
Amaro, just like so many kids at a young age, turned to sports as an outlet — specifically soccer — and was a captain at Millard West, only to have that taken from her as well.
"I tore both my ACL's. That's been rough. Not being able to have that as a way to cool down and calm down has been rough," Amaro said.
The silver lining, her rehab process led her to want to help others as a physical therapist.
"I get to repay that debt to someone like a future me who's out of hope, and I can show them that it will be fine," Amaro said.
Amaro will start her journey to becoming a physical therapist next fall at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Her message to anyone also battling hardships.
"I know everyone says that it'll get better, and it's impossible to believe when you're down in the dumps because you don't want to believe that it'll get better," she said. "But it does and you can't figure it out yourself. You need help, and it's okay to say that you need help because everyone needs help in life."
The luncheon to honor the DJ’s Hero Awards Class of 2024 will be on Tuesday.