Redefining Moments- Overall, Kristina Brennan
Kristina Brennan is a Senior Criminology major with a triple minor in Leadership, Religion, and Disabilities in Society from Weston, Florida. She loves to go to the beach and hang out with her friends/boyfriend. Kristina dreams of being a lawyer and is currently in the process of applying to law schools, wish her luck! Kristina is very active in organizations around campus, especially Dance Marathon at the University of Florida. This is her fourth year being involved and she serves as the Leadership Development Overall for DM 2018. When asked what her “Redefining Moment” was, here is what she said:
“I write this as the Leadership Development Overall for Dance Marathon 2018, but my involvement with Dance Marathon started three years ago as a Dancer for Alpha Omicron Pi. I enjoyed my time and yearned to be a Recruitment Captain the following year, so I applied and was lucky enough to be accepted onto the team. As I write this and try to describe the pivotal moment that redefined my commitment to strive to be a better person, I realize there was no singular moment. It was the accumulation of little moments that made me fall head over heels in love with this organization. It’s the memories of being carried by a stranger when I was a Dancer because I was that exhausted, of when I did my Recruitment Captain interview over Facetime in the Emergency Room because I had shattered my arm hours beforehand, and of some people I didn’t know well in Dance Marathon becoming what I treasure most in the world. Transform Today was one of, if not the best, days of my life. My team raised over $102,000.00 in 26.2 hours and as a school we shattered our record from last year by raising over $540,000.00. The very next day after, I was on the phone with Kris, the Recruitment Overall and a very dear friend of mine, and ignored my sister’s phone call. I was telling Kris that we needed to take a day to appreciate the beauty around us. It was the perfect day and I lamented how we all worked so hard that we forget to take the time to see what we have accomplished. My sister had left a voicemail during this time and I still keep it to this day, “Hey Kristina. This is Kelly. Please give me a call. This is regarding dad. Bye!”. Fifteen words that would destroy me. I called her back and she told me our father had a massive stroke. Sparing the details of what was weeks and months of the darkest times in my life, my father is now working to fight every single day. I keep that voicemail to give me perspective. Whenever I am feeling lazy, whenever I want to give up, and even when I do well, I listen to that voicemail to remind myself that I can always do more, give more, and be more. We constantly talk about redefining a single moment in Dance Marathon, and I’m such an adamant believer in this mentality because a series of single moments changed everything for me, so why couldn’t these moments change the next generation of UF students as well.”
We are so inspired by everything our Overalls do for us, and can’t wait to see them ~redefine moments~ for the rest of their lives!
-Lauren Palen