About Sam
"im an optimist, good vibes only :) "
Hi, I’m Sam Haylee — a Berkeley girl with a love for coffee, dancing, storytelling, and soulful things. I’m also a Latina student navigating chronic illness, college chaos, and chasing dreams of becoming a surgeon or working in the healthcare field!
At 16, I founded a nonprofit called Thundar Lightning & Peace, inspired by my Army veteran mom and my dog Thundar (born the same day as my first surgery). I created this platform to share soft strength, real talk, and healing stories — because life is messy and beautiful all at once.
Her Story
I’ve moved schools, cities, and houses six times — and in many ways, I’ve been rebuilding my life over and over again. I’ve had four surgeries (starting with my gallbladder at 13), and I was recently diagnosed with both a chronic illness and an autoimmune disorder — Functional Neurological Disorder and Mast Cell Activation Syndrome — just days after turning 20.
Life has thrown me curveballs: medical uncertainty, physical pain, emotional exhaustion, harsh voices, and the unique challenge of trying to balance school, sorority life, and becoming a doctor... all while trying to heal.
But somewhere in the chaos, I found my voice.
I found my best friends.
I found faith.
I found me. :)
This blog is for anyone who’s ever felt “too much” or “not enough.”
For the overthinkers, the survivors, the soft-hearted dreamers.
It’s for the girls balancing healing with ambition, the ones who keep showing up even when no one sees the struggle.
It’s for anyone learning to live boldly in a world that often asks us to shrink — and a reminder that no matter the storm, there is also peace and sunshine to be found.
Because beauty does come from the storms. And this is mine.
Sam Haylee Moreno
CEO & Founder, Thundar Lightning & Peace
