What Union City Kids Want to Be When They Grow Up

Our local school children have big aspirations, and they know exactly what they have to do to reach their goals.

One ambitious Eastin Elementary third grader is determined to be an actress when she graduates from high school, attributing her future success to her being a “drama queen.”

“I will become an actress because I like to act whenever I can. My dad always calls me a ‘drama queen’ or a faker because I am always a drama queen and pretending to get hurt like I’m in a movie or something,” the unnamed student wrote in her entry for The Year 2021 Essay Contest, a contest exclusive to third grade students.

Even at her young age, the aspiring starlet knows it won’t happen overnight. “I would have to take acting classes until I am good enough to sign up to be in several plays while I’m young, and while I’m in college, I’ll be in a REAL movie!”

Her essay is just one of 146 submissions compiled into a digital booklet by Sunil Sethi Real Estate, organizers of The Year 2021 Essay Contest.

Sethi asked that students detail what they plan to do when they graduate from high school in 2021.

“We’re pretty excited about the result,” said Sethi who, along with his partners, spread word of the contest when . The contest ran through Nov. 10.

Sethi, who has donated dictionaries to district students since 2006, hopes the contest will get kids thinking about their futures.

“I remember the essay I wrote in 3rd grade, and though I never became a scientist who retired at age 30, it did make me realize that I would have to pick a future career and figure out what I needed to do to get there,” Sethi said. “Hopefully now that the idea has been planted in their heads, they’ll revisit their plan, re-plan and make adjustments as their career desires change.”

Among the most popular professions children wrote about were doctors, teachers, artists and firefighters, Sethi said. There were also several unique career choices, such as Lego designer, wildlife rehabilitator and UFC fighter.

“The reason I want to be a Lego designer is because I enjoy it, and because I am a great Lego builder,” wrote one student who researched current Lego designers. “After I have my job, I might start afterschool Lego club programs to help kids focus on the process of building Legos. When I grow up, I will go to homeless people with no toys, and I will give some of the Legos to toyless children.”

“I want to live my dream, but also help other people,” the student concluded.

Each student who participated in the contest will receive a commendation letter from Alameda County Supervisor Nadyer Lockyer, a contest sponsor, along with a commemorative pen with the words “I know what I want to be when I grow up.”

Download the essay compilation at www.sunilsethi.com or view it online by clicking on the thumbnail above.

For more information on the contest, visit www.facebook.com/essaycontest.