Generation X has been tabbed with a moniker of being selfish and irreverent. It has been described as the baggy-pant wearing, rap music bumping, heavy metal listening, marijuana smoking youth who are responsible for ruining the fabric of our American culture.

However, even with the negative attitudes that hamper our reputation, there are examples of individuals who contradict the negative attributes that have been assigned to our generation.

There is no better example than Sacramento State?s own Myesha Kirtman. It?s evident as soon as you sit down and converse with the senior, that there is something different about her.

It wasn?t always easy for Kirtman, who grew up in the Fillmore District of San Francisco.

“Growing up in Fillmore was difficult,” Kirtman said. “Drugs, violence, and turmoil are what a typical day was littered with.”

Luckily, Kirtman?s strong family influence kept her focused on things that didn?t involve being in a bad environment.

“My parents would put me in summer camps,” Kirtman said. “It was important for them to expose me to the positive facets of being African-American, which was quite different then some of the things that I saw on a daily basis.”

Even with all the activities that Kirtman was involved in, it wasn?t until she began to run track at the age of eight that she truly began to enjoy her extra curricular activities.

“Track became the number one thing in my life outside of school and family,” Kirtman said. “I just developed a passion for it and once I actually knew that I could be successful in the sport, I really began to devote all my spare time to it.”

Her father, Michael Kirtman, was once a professional football player who played for the Dallas Cowboys and the Buffalo Bills in the late 70?s, so it was only a matter of time before Myesha?s athletic passion was extracted.

Myesha?s talent on the track would ultimately be exposed when she arrived at Lowell High School, a preparatory High School in Richmond, in which she had an immediate impact on the program.

As her senior year in High School approached, schools such as the University of California, Cal State Northridge, Texas Tech, and Sac State, began recognizing Myesha?s incredible athletic ability, as each of the schools offered her a full scholarship.

It was at the end of her senior year that Kirtman chose to attend Sac State.

“Those other schools that offered me scholarships were excellent schools,” Kirtman said. “But Sac State was a the school that just felt right. It was close to home and they showed a legitimate interest in making me an integral part of their program.”

Granted, Myesha has been blessed with uncanny athletic ability, but it is when you sit down and speak with her that you realize her athletic talents are only a small fraction of her personality.

Myesha, who is scheduled to get her degree this month in Sociology, also has aspirations of attaining a Master?s Degree en route to becoming a social worker.

“I want to help people,” Kirtman said. “I get great satisfaction in helping people. I believe that God has put me here with the specific purpose of helping people.”

While her heart?s desire may be to help others, Myesha has helped herself become the Big Sky?s top 100-meter hurdle performer. This weekend in Modesto, Myesha ran a blistering 13.74 in the 100-meter hurdles.

Not only is her 13.74 time in the 100-meter hurdles the Big Sky?s top time this year, but it is also the second-best time in Hornet history.

This coming weekend, Myesha will be looking to add to her growing list of accolades, as she attempts to go for a Big Sky Championship in the event.

“Nothing in life is easy. God would never put an obstacle in your way that was impossible to overcome,” Kirtman said.