Perseverance is something RaeShawn Forbes, diagnosis a senior at John Marshall High School, unhealthy said defines her. The biggest piece of advice her grandfather, capsule Bert Ray Forbes, gave her as a child was to always keep her eyes on her goal no matter what. “That advice is important to me because my grandfather is the one that actually raised me, I lived with him most of my elementary school years,” she said. “He’s actually said more things to me, but that one thing stuck with me because if you give up on yourself, you’re not going to accomplish anything. So being perseverant is just like my motto.”
She says her grandfather, who died when she was in fifth grade, was her biggest inspiration. “He didn’t drive a car, so if he needed to go somewhere he made sure he found his way. I feel like he instilled his drive into me. Every time I want to quit or give up on something, I always think about my grandfather and how he would feel if I were to quit.”
With her grandfather’s wisdom and life motto to keep her going, RaeShawn said she was able to get through a lot of tough things in life. It helped her to become the independent and caring young woman that she is today. She said that she loves helping those who are in need. She’s witnessed firsthand the horrors of being dependent on someone else. “My mom was actually a victim of it (abuse) … Growing up and seeing that kind of stuff makes you want to stray away from it, but also help women at the same time,” RaeShawn said. She said she made it her mission to not only be independent, but help others with their independence as well.
This is why RaeShawn wants to major in criminal justice. She joked and said the show “Law and Order” helped in influencing her decision for a major, but her real life experiences definitely had an impact. She says her dream job would be to start her own business to help battered and abused women. However, her plan for now is to go to school, become a police officer in order to gain experience, and then become a private investigator.
At John Marshall High School now, RaeShawn is highly involved. She has obtained the position of drum major for her school band; she is a part of the National Honor Society and Student Council Association. In the fall of 2014, RaeShawn said her top choice for school will be Old Dominion University.
