For the second year in a row, a local girl has been appointed to the National Teen Advocacy Council. Only a dozen girls around the entire nation are considered each year, and this year’s pool of applicants was larger than ever before.
August Ragland, this year’s Central Alabama appointee, is eager to take on the challenge. She says, “The Teen Advocacy Council (TAC) will provide the perfect platform for me to spread the awareness of those things that I am passionate about while helping sharpen my communication and leadership skills.”
For August, advocacy is personal – particularly the issue of suicide awareness. “I lost a family member very special to my heart over a year ago to suicide,” she says. “Knowing the effects of suicide is why I am so passionate about the issue. Suicide not only takes away the possibility for the victim to get better, but also makes it harder for the survivors to continue. The survivors are left with guilt, questions, grief, and loneliness. I am left with the fact that my loved one will never get to see me march in the band, graduate from school, or even get married.”
“I am dedicated to doing what I can to make sure no other family has to go through what my family did. I want to see people educated so they will know that suicide is not an option. I will continue to be the change I want to see and spread awareness and love to those who need to know someone cares.”
August has been a Girls Inc. girl for over four years. In that time, she says she’s learned so much about communication, teamwork, leadership, and problem solving. She expresses her gratitude for Girls Inc. by saying, “I am grateful for all I have learned and for the friendships that will last a lifetime.”
Throughout her strong, smart, and bold journey, August has been able to define what change she wants to see in the world. She’s passionately working towards “a world with less hate and more love, a world with more diversity and less division and a world where you can be accepted just as you are.”
We can’t wait to see August’s continued development as a young leader. Her appointment to the Teen Advocacy Council is just the beginning — this strong, smart, and bold young woman will certainly change the world. Congratulations, August!