By the age of 2 Mia Colon, now a Morgan senior, had already lived in 5 houses and 4 states.

“My family moved anywhere where there was an opportunity for my parents to work,” reflected Colon.

At a young age, travel became normal for Colon.

Colon and her family first lived in North Carolina, then Delaware, and California, before arriving in Connecticut, where they lived in Niantic for a while until there was a fire, causing them to move to Clinton.

“Since I moved around at such a young age, moving wasn’t as much of a change as it would’ve been if I was already in school,” stated Colon.

Growing up, Colon’s mother worked as an in-home nanny, which meant that every weekday, Colon was surrounded by little children. Because of this, like her mother, Colon always felt like a caretaker for the children.

“There were always little kids at my house, and helping out with them became a regular part of my life.”

As Colon grew older, she realized her happiness was solely based on surrounding herself with people. Which at times could be difficult, considering how much she moved.

During her sophomore year of high school, her friend group fluctuated constantly, and she needed to learn to be okay with being alone. Colon talks about how she had to accept being alone and realize you don’t always need to be with your friends.

Not feeling lonely

while being alone and understanding, “I don’t need other people to determine my happiness,” was a significant realization for Colon from a young age.

Colon, after spending 14 years in Clinton, is ready for her next step.

This coming fall, Colon will be attending Southern Connecticut State University and majoring in Nursing. She believes her prior experiences around children and her motherly instinct from years of spending time with children have sparked an interest in caretaking.

Morgan has also played a role in her career path. In her junior year, Colon matched up with Mrs Lissy for her Anatomy course. Here, she deepened her interest in the medical field.

“Anatomy had come easy to me; there was a lot of memorization, and I liked the thought process of being given a scenario and figuring out what type of disease it was, and the procedure needed.”

Nursing isn’t just an area of passion for Colon, though, as her personality is a perfect match for the career. Across Morgan, Colon is known for having an infectious personality and positive energy. Colon’s Spanish teacher and former volleyball coach, Laura Luther, said, “Mia spreads light wherever she goes. She can talk to anyone about anything and makes everyone smile.”

Mia has been a part of the Morgan volleyball team since her freshman year, and she showed her leadership through that team. Ella Beermuender, a freshman on the volleyball team, says, “Mia is always so welcom

ing and kind, always making sure I felt included. She even offered to give me rides whenever I needed them, never hesitating to help out.”

This positivity that Colon shines with stems from her strong characteristics of leadership, kindness, compassion, and bravery. Luther describes Colon as “embodying the husky spirit.”

As Colon moves on to her next step in life, she knows what it will take to find success. She has been doing it all her life. From moving all around as a child, over time, Colon realized “opportunities aren’t always in one place. You don’t always have to search the area until there is nowhere else to look to find an opportunity for yourself.”