My name is Emma Lou Smith, and I am a student-athlete at Eckerd College in Saint Petersburg, Florida. I play on the women's soccer team at Eckerd, and I aim to get my degree in marketing with minors in international business and psychology. I aim to start a nonprofit in the future for athletes and mental health.

My story starts off with my journey as a soccer player. I started playing at a young age, and quickly became obsessed with the sport. Overtime I have been rather unlucky with injuries, leading to me having had 5 major surgeries from soccer injuries. This has taken a toll on my mental health, and I struggled with anxiety and depression. Over time I have been able to speak to a therapist, get on medications, and find healthy coping mechanisms. This is what drives my desire to include mental health and athletics in my personal brand. Being an athlete has always been a part of my identity, and now I consider mental health advocacy to be a huge part of my brand.

This past season I tore my ACL and meniscus, leading me to my 5th surgery from soccer. Unfortunately two of my teammates Kaia and Morgan also tore their ACL, so we became the “ACL Crew”. Having their support and understanding during this recovery has been extremely helpful and has allowed me to not face the challenges alone. They have taught me the importance of having a community around you, and it is influential for my future nonprofit.

COMMUNITY

In my first semester at Eckerd I met the daughter of the head of marketing for Eckerd, and her name is also Emma. I quickly became a “role model” for Emma as she says, and this meant so much to me. One day after I shared my story on instagram, Emma came up to me before my soccer game and told me how much of an inspiration I was to her. Thankfully, this moment was captured on camera.

INSPIRING

“I will create a community of dedicated mental health advocates for athletes to end the stigma around mental health in sports”

Seeking CHANGE rather than just AWARENESS

EMPATHETIC, SUPPORTIVE, RELIABLE

I aim to emphasize the importance of COMMUNITY and capitalize on my EXPERIENCE to help others

I am thrilled to announce the start of the Morgans Message chapter at Eckerd College. My passion for mental health advocacy has led to my recent status as an ambassador for Morgans Message, and I am eager to raise awareness on Eckerd’s campus. In the near future, I will be establishing Morgans Message as a club on campus and I will begin to host meetings, fundraisers, and dedication games.

I have since created the instagram page for Morgans Message at Eckerd College, and created both the logo and an introduction post. I was able to share the purpose and mission of the program, and what I would like to implement at Eckerd College. I aim to gain awareness of the program through the instagram by gaining followers and promotion of the posts on followers stories.

Sharing my personal story has always been of interest to me, so when I came across @hopeforathletes on instagram, I was inspired to reach out. I wrote my story about my struggles with an eating disorder and mental health, and the owner of the page responded quickly and was excited about my willingness to share. The post was shared on their public profile as well as my personal profile on instagram, and I immediately received an abundance of support and interactions (likes, comments, follows). Sharing my story is a way of inspiring others and displaying my desire to make a difference in the community. I aim to build my platform over time to start my own nonprofit, so by sharing my story with @hopeforathletes I was able to get a great start. This along with my new ambassador status with Morgans Message allows me to elevate my status and provide me with credibility for the future. I am beyond excited that I was able to pursue these opportunities, and I cannot wait to make a difference in my community!

I have begun creating the brand logo for my future nonprofit “Mindful Athlete Alliance” as I am extremely eager to take initiative right after graduation. I wanted to display the slogan “beyond the sport” as it is a good reminder to all athletes that there is a life beyond sports and that a sport doesn’t have to be your identity. This aligns with my personal struggle of soccer being my identity for so long, so I wanted to make sure I included this in my brand. The logo includes people running across a finish line which I chose because it displays success and an accomplishment, something that all athletes can relate to. I have huge aspirations for my future with this nonprofit, so I beyond excited to start building its foundation.