ONE HAPPY FAMILY: Rains earns scholarship for overcoming obstacles

By WILL STEWART / Staff Reporter for the Southern Standard

High school senior and Neill-Sandler Scholarship winner Miranda Rains, center, is seen here with grandparents Lawerence and Betty Jo Lane. The Lanes have raised Rains since she was 9. Now it is Rains who is taking care of them. (Will Stewart photo)

Rewarded for her courage and achievement in the face of adversity, Warren County High School senior Miranda Rains was recently selected to be a Neill-Sandler Scholar at MTSU.

The program was established to provide scholarships to students in Middle Tennessee who have overcome major obstacles in their lives. This year’s 10 recipients, who have each maintained high grade point averages and exhibited leadership ability in school, church and community activities, each received $5,000 scholarships from the Neill-Sandler Automotive Group.

“The Neill-Sandler Scholarships are some of the most competitive and most valuable we have on campus,” said MTSU President Sidney McPhee. “They reach a special group of students who have overcome great adversities to pursue a college education. These are young people we are proud to have at MTSU.”

During the first years of her life, Rains was often dropped off at her grandparents’ house to escape the instability at her own home. At age 9 she was permanently taken in by her grandparents, Lawerence and Betty Jo Lane, who provided her a warm and loving home.

Now that she’s older, the roles have reversed and it is Rains who takes care of her grandparents. She often starts her day at 3 a.m. by driving her grandfather, who suffers from kidney disease, to dialysis treatments. She also helps to care for her ill grandmother.

“My life hasn’t been the greatest, but it certainly hasn’t been the worst,” said Rains. “I know there have been others who have had worse lives than mine.”

Despite her hardships, she has managed not only to get by in school, but to thrive, said high school senior English teacher Melba Clark. Rains has carried a heavy academic load, including many college level advanced placement classes. She will graduate with a 4.26 weighted GPA.

In addition, Clark said, she works after school on the yearbook and performs community service through her membership in the National Honor Society. Rains is also a member of the Beta Club and the School Board’s Student Advisory Committee.

Though she’s had a more difficult life than most people her age, she has chosen a positive approach.

“I tried helping others instead of waiting for them to help me,” she said. “I realized I wasn’t the only one who had trouble at home. I knew how I desperately wanted someone to be there for me and help me, and I discovered that helping others helped me and brought me happiness.”

Rains plans to use her scholarship to pursue a degree in business education with a minor in photography. She says she would one day like to open a photography studio.