Community Impact
The work I'm most proud of doesn't happen on a stage. It happens in classrooms, kitchens, church basements, and quiet moments with people who needed someone to keep showing up for them.
I became a kinship caregiver unexpectedly. Nobody hands you a manual. You figure it out while still carrying everything else life is asking of you. I show up for the kids in my care the same way I show up everywhere else: consistently, even when it's hard, even when I'm tired. Advocating for families navigating the kinship and foster system isn't something I do because it looks good. It's something I do because I know firsthand what it costs when nobody shows up.
I tutored students at Midlands for two years. Some of them just needed someone to tell them they were capable. That's it. Not a strategy, not a framework. Just someone who believed in them before they believed in themselves. I mentor students, especially nontraditional ones, because I remember exactly what it felt like to sit in that classroom and wonder if I belonged there. You do. That's what I want every person I work with to leave knowing.
My faith is the foundation everything else is built on. It's what kept me going in the parking lot. It's what I lean on when the pressure gets heavy. I show up in faith-centered spaces because I believe leadership and service are most powerful when they're rooted in something bigger than ambition. Purpose over pressure isn't just a brand phrase for me. It's how I actually live.
This one started as a student initiative. Our PTK chapter at Midlands identified food insecurity as a real problem for students on campus and we launched blessing boxes on two of the most attended campuses in Columbia. The college saw what we built, recognized how big the need actually was, and turned our student project into a full campus program. The Maverick Market now serves hundreds of students weekly. That's what happens when students stop waiting for someone else to solve the problem.
Community work for me isn't a project. It's a posture. I bring it into every space I enter, from the classroom to the salon chair to every stage I stand on. My commitment is simple: leave every community I touch a little more whole, a little more seen, and a little more ready for what's next.
If you're working on something in Columbia or across South Carolina that needs a voice, a partner, or a willing pair of hands, I'd love to hear from you.