Wellness Wednesday with Calli Brielle McIntyre

Happy Wellness Wednesday everyone,

First of all, I want to apologize for my absence. However, I am back with a FANTASTIC story about my new friend, Calli Brielle McIntyre.

Calli McIntyre: author of The Anteater that Couldn't Eat Ants. — Calli McIntyre: author of The Anteater that Couldn’t Eat Ants.

During my weekend at the Food Allergy Research and Education convention in Orlando, I had the opportunity to meet this inspiring young lady. Calli is currently Miss Garner’s Outstanding Teen 2016, and advocates for children suffering from food allergies and who are victims of bullying, since she herself suffers from a severe peanut allergy.

Her goal is to educate young children with and without food allergies about the dangers of cross contamination. She also teaches these young children about acceptance of others in order to stem the epidemic of bullying among teenagers. When Calli was younger, she was bullied by her friends’ parents because they found her allergies “too complicated.”

Her one piece of advice to the general population is to strive for understanding and acceptance. Our society has to make sure that children, teens and adults with food allergies feel embraced by their peers, not cast out because of their allergies (something these individuals can’t control.)

Another fun fact! This 15 year old has already written, illustrated and published her own book, The Anteater That Couldn’t Eat Ants. When going into schools to speak to children, she realized there weren’t many books geared towards elementary age school children that teaches the significance of allergies. This inspired Calli to write her own book to help promote her message. You can buy it on her website http://www.crowningpurpose.org/ where you can also learn more about this exceptional girl or contact her for more information.

Her accomplishments don’t end there! This 15 year old has her own non-profit organization called Crowning Purpose to promote the meaning behind the crown. There are 4 points to the crown: style, scholarship, service and success. Her organization is based on the service aspect and using that to inspire others.