Stephen Owens '21 Recruiting Profile

Three attributes that define me are perseverance, good work ethic, and determination.  I have always been one of the hardest working students in my classes at school, and I have also worked hard outside of school whether it be in sports or around the house.  No matter what the situation, my parents encouraged me to keep trying and work through whatever challenges or hardships I was facing at the time.  As I did so, I learned that these attributes would help me to achieve my goals if I continued to believe in myself and work hard.

One challenging event in my life that really demonstrates these attributes was when I turned 13 and my dad and I decided to run a Half Marathon together.  We started the training in July and planned to run the race in December.  Anyone from Texas knows that July is hot, and during one run about a month into our training, I had a heat stroke.  The temperature was over 90 degrees and we did not have enough water.  As I sprinted to the finish, I started to feel dizzy.  When I sat down, I passed out and started breaking out into a cold sweat.  My dad called my mom and they had to drag me into the car and rush me into the hospital.  I almost died.  At the hospital, they hooked me up to an IV, sprayed me down with cool water, and worked to bring down my temperature.  I was in the hospital for three days.

I took three weeks of training off in order to recover, and after that, I had to decide whether I wanted to keep training or whether to give up on running the Half Marathon.  To continue training meant I had to restart from day 1 and start over at just running a mile.  I chose to keep going.  We did make some changes though and we made sure to run earlier in the day when it was cooler, and also to bring more water with us on each run.  I built my strength back up and was soon running 6 miles, then 8, then 10.  When December came, I was ready and we ran the Rock and Roll Half Marathon in San Antonio.  Unlike summer in Texas, this day was cold and raining; but I had already been through so much in my training that I knew I could make it.  I finished with my fastest time yet, and I proved to myself that I could persevere through hard work and determination.