Written by: Kristen Davis | Media by: Thomas Hajny
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Have you ever seen Disney’s “Enchanted”? You know, the movie where the girl becomes a princess and has an extremely animated voice and seems to almost live in a world of constant positivity? Well if you have met Ashley Featherston, you automatically have a “real-life” example of the scene I just described. For those of you who do not know, Ashley Featherston is a self-proclaimed princess, who roams the campus of Greenville College. She has been an active student for the last 4 years and has left a lasting impact on Greenville College. She is a ministry major who focuses on spreading Christ’s love through volunteering at the Simple Room and in many other forms.
Recently, Ashley spoke in Vesper’s and shared her story. If you ask her to describe her childhood, she would tell you that it was perfect. However, Ashley faced struggles that helped determine the type of person she is today. She is vulnerable, genuine, loving, and extremely sensitive to those facing troubles and hardships in their life. When asked about Ashley’s message, Greenville College’s student president Brent McCollum said, “What we need more of on this campus is vulnerability. We preach that we are all about community, but sometimes we get lost in that process and our ‘vulnerability’ becomes forced. Ashley stood up and said, ‘hey I don’t know half of you in this room, but here’s my story’. It just shows that her walk of faith is dedicated to reaching out to others through service and genuine compassion.”
Ashley’s message seemed to inspire many students on campus to open up to others and share their story. “ Something I’ve learned is that your story doesn’t have to fit some cookie-cutter mold of a story, no matter how big or small, your story is valuable. Your pain is relevant,” says McCollum. Greenville is about community. As a community, we should be a grace-filled, approachable people that is actively seeking out opportunities to reach those who need help and provide an abundance of assistance if help is necessary.
