For the past 16 years I have been fighting a disease. A disease that I battle every day called obesity. 8 months ago I was fully consumed and had been overpowered by obesity. The more I started to gain the closer I came toward death. Obesity began to define me and had comically swallowed me, and I was helpless. Trapped between fantasy and reality where was I to go?

I walked on the Academy of the Sierras campus weighing 483 pounds scared, depressed and wanting to die no matter what means I had to go through. Raised in the ghetto of Boston I was early on introduced to the streets. I was a product of my environment. The only thing my environment had exposed me to was food, drugs, and hustling. Doing what you need to do to get by. Afraid and confused I had turned to food as my one and only friend.

When I first came here I was so scared to make a change because all my life obesity had defined me. My aggression became worse and the tiger start to roar in me. Putting on a smile on the outside caused me to tear apart inside. I was now foreign to my body and consumed by my madness.

One day I had stopped fighting and had died on the inside and a wise man brought me back to life. With a couple of simple questions my whole world and perspective turned. How many happy moments have you had back at home? The truth was that I had few back at home. Why would you want to go back to pain? Who was I kidding I didn't know what I really wanted all I knew deep down inside of me was I was tired of hurting and needed to stop the pain. I knew from then on if I wanted to stop my pain I had to trust these two people named Dan Barney and Molly Carmel. How could they understand what I was going through but some how they had me reach down deep and bathe in the warmth of determination. Trusting Molly and Dan was one of the hardest things in my life. Would they abandon me, give up on me or straight up feed me bullshit.

For the last 7 months I have fought remembering the pain, shame and games. No matter how hard I never gave up. Perseverance became my new friend. I have achieved greatness and became the first Yabo in AOS history.

Ladies and gentlemen my name is Jahcobie and I stand before you a current survivor of obesity born to a drug addicted mother and a father who raised me as single parent. Now I have a wonderful step mother who has stuck by me since I was 7 and never gave up on the little fat suicidal boy I once was consumed by. I have lost 176 pounds and have made a 360 degrees turn around from where I once was.

I am here to deliver a message from the heart. Hope rings through this world for every person who is and has suffered from obesity. If we all stand together we can abolish obesity one person at a time starting with ourselves. Hope is the feeling that a desire will be fulfilled. Having hope means believing in the impossible.

I ask each and every person sitting here today, How bad do you want it? I know for myself I want it so bad I would give my life trying to accomplish it. My life has been full of failures and I for once in my life refuse to fail. No matter what it takes.

Picking up the pieces and put the puzzle back together again. How long it will take is irrelevant, how hard you will fight and how much hope you have will have is the question. I will tell you there will be so many obstacles that stand in your way, many noises trying to distract you, and its up to you to quiet your noises one at a time. Holding on to hope in the palm of your hands and running with it. Never giving up through the pain the shame and the games because were in the race for victory.

I don't know about you but I'm tired of failing. Disappointment after disappointment. Matter after matter. A beautiful lady named Molly once said to me "Eye on the prize" and what's our prize? A little more happiness. How bad do we really want it?

Giving the circumstances before us living in the society we live in, it is so easy to be distracted from keeping our eye on the prize. When everything is all said in done one thing lingers, do we keep on to hope. Yes because we have all been given a second chance at life and we need to use it to our full advantage.

Ladies and gentlemen rather you or I have a drug problem, eating disorder, disease, financial problem. There is one common thing we must not give up and that is hope. Remember that feeling when you were just sick and tired and lets use that as our motivation. Again I ask, how bad do you want it? Is your eye on the prize? If it isn't then were wasting our time. Are we learning from yesterday? Living for today? Having hope for tomorrow? If were not then what are we doing?

We may fall down but what counts is when and how we get back up. Start from the basic build back up from the foundation. Remembering negative coping skills aren't loving us back. When everything is all said and done do we really have hope? The desire to fulfill.

When your putting yourself down or when you have those noises you tell yourself to shut up. What is being hard on yourself doing for you in that moment? Nothing!

I fight my disease with pride and honor with knowledge as my armor keeping my eye on my prize. How bad do you want it?