Rachel Shepherd is a 21-year-old communications major who aspires to be a journalism teacher. Besides school, she fills her days and nights with community service, yoga, and Karaoke.

Shepherd is from the small town of Newport in Perry County. After graduating high school she attended Harrisburg Area Community College. It was there that Shepherd’s life would change. During her freshman year of college, Shepherd was in a car accident.

“It nearly cost me my life and it has affected it ever since,” Shepherd said of the experience. Though most of her injuries have healed, the accident has left one permanent scar. “Due to the head trauma the accident has left me with a serious hearing disability. It is predicted that I will be deaf in 10 years,” she said.

However, through this experience Shepherd has made great strides in helping herself and others. Just by talking to her you can tell that that she loves life and is a very caring and giving person. She takes care of her body by working out at her gym. She participates in power yoga every morning before school. She and her family are also preparing themselves for the possibility of her being deaf by learning sign language. Shepherd said, “I used to look at sign language and think it was neat, but now it’s just scary to think about it.”

Shepherd is committed to community service. She even helped to start a club called Circle K here on campus. The club helps out wherever they can. In the past they’ve helped out with the Ronald McDonald House, local retirement homes, and hospitals. “We bring the children balloons, visit, play games, and cook,” Shepherd said. “It’s a great feeling to know that you’ve made their day a little better.” Shepherd feels that the club is very rewarding. In fact, last year the club sent her and another member to Orlando, Florida so that they could go to Disney World. It was for a seminar but it was still a lot of fun. “I went back to being a kid,” Shepherd said.

Shepherd feels that the best service she’s ever done was for her parents. The accident cost her family a lot, not only in medical bills but also in constant care. However, the accident was not her fault so they received a large settlement. “I would hate to think of where my family would be right now if I couldn’t have helped them,” Shepherd said.

Though Shepherd’s past has been challenging, her future looks bright. She plans on moving on to Temple to receive her masters in journalism. She eventually would like to use her degree to teach high school journalism. It looks like Shepherd will always be helping people.