Melinda Dill
mdill@UDel.edu

I spent most of my life growing up in a small town on the eastern shore of Maryland as many generations of my family did before me. Although I no longer reside there, it is the values of that culture that influenced who I am and my opinions. The community is conservative in their ways of thinking. This area is not overly religious however, the morals of most of the people are very high. Honesty is stressed and this is reflected by a low crime rate. There is very little emphasis placed on getting a good education. Most of my classmates did not go to college. There were a large number of my peers that dropped out of high school and many others that had at least one child before they graduated. It is not at all uncommon for girls to move in with their boyfriends while in high school. The community is very excepting of children born out of wedlock and of single parent families. This culture may be slow learning about technology and modern concepts but they know a lot about being respectful and courteous to the people around them. It is these values that I treasure the most and will carry with me throughout my life.