John Wee was just four-years-old when his parents brought him and his older brother and sister to California from the Philippines.John’s parents dreamed that their youngest child would be the first in the immediate family to attend college - a dream he’s now achieved, with the help of a TGF scholarship.John’s road to UC Santa Cruz started in middle school. With the help of Peninsula Bridge, which works with low-income students to prepare them for high school and college, John gained the confidence to apply to St Francis High School.“I worked [for the] high school, where they would pay off the tuition as long as I worked 100 or more hours or more per year,” John said.“For the first two years I mostly worked over the summer, scraping gum and cleaning the school. I also helped the IT department. For the second two years I worked in the cafeteria.”John graduated high school with A grades, and is now a Freshman at UC Santa Cruz, majoring in Computer Science where he continues to excel academically.“My parents have high expectations of me, but in a good way, because they are also expectations that I hold for myself.” he said.John graduated high school with A grades, and is now a Freshman at UC Santa Cruz, majoring in Computer Science where he continues to excel academically.“My parents have high expectations of me, but in a good way, because they are also expectations that I hold for myself.” he said.