PBS Wisconsin Originals

Aleya

My name's Aleya Stibbe and I'm a senior at the Richland Center High School.

cheering, movement sounds

Aleya

Aleya was a star member of her track team. She had just recovered from an injury she suffered in her junior year. She was looking forward to competing at state for the third year in a row. Coming into this season I was looking forward to because I worked so hard to overcome that injury. I did a lot of PT for it. And I was coming back strong. I was definitely upset when I heard that the season was going to be canceled. I wanted my last track meet, my last state meet, whatever it was. It was just, like, heartbreaking, I guess.

Aleya turned her attention to another passion

nursing. She has been working as a CNA for two years and has been facing the pandemic head-on.

Aleya

At the age of 16, I decided to get my CNA at Southwest Tech. Since I was very young, I've always wanted to become a nurse. It just feels right. Like, I enjoy doing what I do and helping people. The pandemic hasn't really affected my decision to go into the nursing field because I've always really wanted to go into the nursing field. It's kind of made me realize that I actually want to keep going in the medical field and down this path. I feel like I'm making a difference.