Lizzy Cruz

"My parents got divorced  when I was really young and I was raised by a single mother. We did not have a lot of money and we went on public assistance for a little bit so we used food stamps for a while. My older sister Gina had to step up and help raise me and my other sister Jessica. We're really close as a family because growing up it was just us. Our extended family was all up in New York and we didn't talk to them much. It was a lot harder growing up with just one parent. It taught me to respect hard work and my mom make it clear to us that education was always a priority. She let my sister Gina go to college right out of school even though it would've been easier to have her work and contribute she let her to to college full time. My sister then got a job after graduating which really helped us out. Being raised by a single parent was a huge part of my upbringing."