Rachel Baribeau
In 2016, ground-breaking national sportscaster Rachel Joy Baribeau penned a piece for GridironNow entitled, “College Football is Breaking My Heart.” The game she loved was becoming unrecognizable. Negative news stories dominated the game, and no campus seemed immune. Most broadcasters would have left it at that. Not Rachel. Rachel developed #ImChangingtheNarrative with student-athletes in mind and a belief that one crooked course made straight is everything. One misstep not taken means one less victim in the world. And one less life thrown away because of a split-second bad decision. At Rachel’s first visit sometimes they’re skeptical when the petite Latina woman is introduced, but in just 60 minutes she wins them over. She now speaks to athletes, law enforcement, churches, and corporations about taking back the headlines for good – showing them that they have the power to change the narrative and to find their purpose in life outside of their sport and everyday lives. To live lives of…Purpose, Passion and Platform. Just like her inspiration, Alabama and NFL star Kevin Turner did before he succumbed to ALS and CTE. When she’s finished, they wait in line to speak to her. They tweet, private message, and text her. They trust her and report back on their efforts to become the kings and queens she consistently challenges them. While the message originated as purpose, passion, platform, over four-plus years and 40 campuses, it now encompasses, heavily, mental health, being a KING/QUEEN every day of your life, and interpersonal relationships, as Rachel was a victim of domestic violence herself. When she's not scaling the world's tallest freestanding mountain to raise money for ALS or speaking from a stage or computer near you, she enjoys working one-on-one to help others find their own personal #ImChangingtheNarrative, and reclaim their God-given JOY! http://rachelbaribeau.com