Alicia began fundraising for the Children's Assessment Center in 2013 after graduating from their program, becoming a survivor of sexual assault at the age of 13. At age 16 Alicia began fundraising. At age 17, Alicia became an active advocate for other child victims of sexual assault, sharing her story, raising support and spreading awareness. Initially Alicia began her road to becoming a philanthropist by running for a cause. After hearing several stories of adults who were child victims themselves, Alicia knew more needed to be done. On November 13, of 2014, Alicia brought community members together to share in the mission to help children overcome their assault and become survivors themselves. Dancing for a purpose, Alicia and her mother set up the Inaugural INSPIRE Ball. After graduating from high school, Alicia went on to pursue her dream of attending Grand Valley State University, where she is now studying Public Nonprofit Administration. In April of 2016, Alicia was finally able to be a guest speaker at the Children's Assessment Center's annual luncheon (she wasn't able to previously due to their age requirement of being 18). Just finishing an extremely encouraging internship at Kennari Consulting, Alicia will be entering her sophomore year with her head held high to find new ways to spread awareness.
By Alicia |
Normality is a paved road. It’s comfortable to walk. But no flowers grow on it. If you are always trying to be normal, you won’t know how amazing you can be. The only person you should try and be better than, is the person you were yesterday. The struggle in today is developing the strength you need for tomorrow. We learn something from everyone who passes through our lives. Some lessons are painful; others painless; but all are priceless. A friend is someone who you may poor out all the contents of your heart to, chaff and grain together, knowing that the gentlest of hands will take and sift it, keep what is worth keeping, and with a breath of kindness, blow the rest away. If I could give you one thing in life, I would give you the ability to see yourself through my eyes. Only then would you realize how special you are. You are essential. All your fears are limiting your potential. Its time to step into the light and use every ounce of power you have inside. You have to hurt in order to know. Fall in order to grow. Lose in order to gain, because most of life’s lessons are taught through pain. Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a survivor. Always believe that something wonderful is about to happen. Don’t wait for the perfect moment. Take the moment and make it perfect. You don’t always need a plan. Sometimes you just need to breathe, trust, let go and see what happens. When everything goes wrong and things seem to fall apart, when nobody believes in you and you feel alone and stranded; that’s EXACTLY the moment you have to believe in yourself. To get up when you are down, to fight more intensely when you are struggling; to put in the extra effort when you are in sheer pain, to comeback when nobody expects you to, and to stand tall when everyone is pulling you down, that’s what is going to make you a survivor. You were given this life because you were strong enough to live it. What lies behind you and what lies before you are tiny matters compared to what lies within you. Appreciate everything you have. Never regret anything, because at one time it was exactly what you wanted. In the end you only regret the chances you didn’t take. Sometimes you feel like giving up. If you don’t stand for something you will fall for anything. The way you treat yourself sets the standard for others on how you demand to be treated. Don’t settle for anything less than respect. You have to fight through the bad days in order to earn the best days. Forget all the reasons it won’t work and believe in all the reasons it will. The first step is to say you can. Hardships often prepare ordinary people for an extraordinary destiny. Every great story on the planet happened when someone decided not to give up, but kept going no matter what. Remember, it always seems impossible until it is done. Quotes from Google |