"Use your voice. Aim to change one life and one turns to two and two turns to three and before you know it people become more and more educated and aware."
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"For those who want to help raise awareness, my advice would be to go out and just find people that are passionate about the cause that means a lot to you! Be loud and be proud because there is always someone in need. Don’t aim to reach the masses. Start with a small group or just one person, and change their life. Those feelings will only fuel your fire, and it will begin to spread. You’ll notice your influence touching more people than you ever realized." - A.J. Andrews
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As a child A.J. always dreamed of being an amazing athlete. For as long as she can remember she’s always loved sports. From the intense atmospheres to the loud fans, to the nerves that never seem to subside during games. From the beginning she fell in love with challenging herself every single day on her quest to become the best in whatever sport she played. She was a multi-sport athlete as a child and in order to get better, she’d study the craft of those considered to be the best in their sport. She’d watch the way they carried themselves, how competitive they were, the way they played, and then would work tirelessly to imitate everything they did. Her parents always instilled in her the importance of hard work. At a young age, she learned about the rewards that come from hard work. Her parents always knew how competitive she was and the big goals she had in place for herself and her father always told her, “In order to be the best you have to work harder than any and everyone.” There will always be someone better, there is always someone working harder, make sure you’re that someone.” Those words filled her thoughts anytime she would want to take a day off or cut a workout short. Those words developed her into the player she is today because she never wanted to be outworked. She dreamed of playing Division 1 softball and worked hard every single day of her life to make that dream come true.
At Louisiana State University she had a dream to be a starter as freshmen and to go in and have an immediate impact on the team. She didn’t begin the season as a starter but continued to work behind closed doors waiting for her opportunity and eventually won a starting position in the outfield. Her dreams began to get bigger as time progressed and she wanted so badly to be an All-American and make it on the All-American wall and leave her legacy on the field that meant so much to her. Through hard work and dedication, she achieved those dreams without even realizing she was inspiring dreams of the young girls that came to the games every day. Nothing excited her more than having a little girl run up to her after a game to tell her she was her favorite player and that she wants to be an outfielder just like her. She realized in college the impact she had on little girls that dreamed of nothing more than to be in her position one day. That is the moment her dreams expanded even more as it became a goal of hers to do more, be more and inspire more!
Initially she wasn’t quite sure what all she could do to be more and inspire more other than being a great role model to young girls and showing them the rewards of hard work. She had no idea that in 2016 her hard work would result in her receiving one of the most prestigious awards ever given in baseball. By the grace of God and the advice from her dad that never left her mind, she was the first woman ever to be presented with a Rawling Gold Glove. The Gold Glove not only represents her hard work and accomplishments on the field but it also represents the strides that softball is making, and the opportunity for young women to have bigger dreams. Because she always dreamed big, she eventually broke barriers and is honored to be a pioneer in the sport of softball. She’s even more excited now that more young women can have bigger goals, aspire to break barriers and to always be more, do more and achieve more!
A.J. has a desire to impact not only the softball community to set higher goals for themselves but women everywhere! She has a burning passion for sports and entertainment and aspirations to deliver messaging and content to influence culture. She wants women to know they’re powerful and can break barriers regardless of size. A.J. will use her platform to inspire them to have big dreams and work towards those dreams no matter how “impossible” they may seem.
A.J. is currently getting her Masters in Broadcast Journalism at Louisiana State University in order to create media that inspires people as well as being a catalyst for change. She plans to educate, entertain, and inform as she continues to make her my mark in a field dominated by men. Her dreams are continuously growing as she has plans of working in broadcast, covering sports, sharing stories and changing lives.
At Louisiana State University she had a dream to be a starter as freshmen and to go in and have an immediate impact on the team. She didn’t begin the season as a starter but continued to work behind closed doors waiting for her opportunity and eventually won a starting position in the outfield. Her dreams began to get bigger as time progressed and she wanted so badly to be an All-American and make it on the All-American wall and leave her legacy on the field that meant so much to her. Through hard work and dedication, she achieved those dreams without even realizing she was inspiring dreams of the young girls that came to the games every day. Nothing excited her more than having a little girl run up to her after a game to tell her she was her favorite player and that she wants to be an outfielder just like her. She realized in college the impact she had on little girls that dreamed of nothing more than to be in her position one day. That is the moment her dreams expanded even more as it became a goal of hers to do more, be more and inspire more!
Initially she wasn’t quite sure what all she could do to be more and inspire more other than being a great role model to young girls and showing them the rewards of hard work. She had no idea that in 2016 her hard work would result in her receiving one of the most prestigious awards ever given in baseball. By the grace of God and the advice from her dad that never left her mind, she was the first woman ever to be presented with a Rawling Gold Glove. The Gold Glove not only represents her hard work and accomplishments on the field but it also represents the strides that softball is making, and the opportunity for young women to have bigger dreams. Because she always dreamed big, she eventually broke barriers and is honored to be a pioneer in the sport of softball. She’s even more excited now that more young women can have bigger goals, aspire to break barriers and to always be more, do more and achieve more!
A.J. has a desire to impact not only the softball community to set higher goals for themselves but women everywhere! She has a burning passion for sports and entertainment and aspirations to deliver messaging and content to influence culture. She wants women to know they’re powerful and can break barriers regardless of size. A.J. will use her platform to inspire them to have big dreams and work towards those dreams no matter how “impossible” they may seem.
A.J. is currently getting her Masters in Broadcast Journalism at Louisiana State University in order to create media that inspires people as well as being a catalyst for change. She plans to educate, entertain, and inform as she continues to make her my mark in a field dominated by men. Her dreams are continuously growing as she has plans of working in broadcast, covering sports, sharing stories and changing lives.
