PHenomenal Haley

Diagnosed at 18, Haley has made it a lifetime goal to promote her rare lung disease, Pulmonary Hypertension. With the highly qualified ability to educate, and speak to individuals, Haley has become the proud recipient of the Tom Lantos Scholarship in 2013, and the Pulmonary Hypertension Association Outstanding Young Adult PH Citizen Award in 2014. Haley is also striving toward her goal of becoming a published author after winning National Novel Writing Month 2013. “Who would I be without Pulmonary Hypertension? I tell people all the time, ‘Don’t let this disease define you, don’t let it consume you’, blah blah blah. But I ended up swallowing my own words because I’ve let nothing but this disease define me…for the good. Pulmonary Hypertension in a way rescued me letting not only myself know, but skeptical others around me that in fact something WAS wrong. I was not normal; I was never meant to be normal. I’ve always been PHenomenal.” -Haley Lynn (Generation Hope Blog: A PHighting Disease Turned Into a PHenomenal Diagnosis) Rocco Ricardo at her side, this cat lady of course believes in loudly proclaiming the world as yours. Famous for Feminist words and ways, she is not a stranger to this constant developing society, but promotes positivity as well as personal strength. Finding activism within her Native American heritage weaves its way into her words in hopes to make society more aware of exactly what culture is quickly disappearing. “Being a Native American is not just about feathers, and face paint. It’s a beautifully deep, and spiritual culture that’s been turned into a costume, “Rave” character, or movie. We’ve been dehumanized, and ignored so much. Don’t trend on us; respect it.” Haley will continue to “PHight” hard for what she believes in and what she has endured to discover herself, and her capabilities. “I am blessed to finally have the knowledge that I am not a normal 21-year-old nor do I have to try to keep up like one either. I am simply PHenomenal.”