By Sydney Pulliam
Sophomore journalism major Allie Blain has taken hold of a very promising opportunity here at Samford University. This semester, Professor of Journalism and Mass Communications Daniel Haun offered a class centered around podcast production. Blain, ever the self-identified opportunist, decided to take this chance to pursue a dream she’s held onto for a while: creating the “Sit With Us” podcast.
Blain has always loved encouraging others. In high school, she operated a business out of her closet, writing letters to young girls who found themselves in situations where they were not open to sitting with others in social places. Her motivation for her podcast stems from her own personal experiences, and those of her co-host, Hannah Grace Nash, as well.
“Both of us went through stuff in high school and middle school where we weren’t invited to sit with people, where we were excluded from sitting with a group,” said Blain.
Blain’s previous business, “Letters 4 Luv,” had quite the social media presence. She wrote to young girls all over the country, girls who looked to her as a role model and guide throughout the strenuous journey of middle and high school. Unfortunately, “Letters 4 Luv” no longer operates at the capacity it once did.
“One thing about me is that I have a really high standard of excellence,” Blain said. “So when I came to college, I realized I could not run my business with excellence… So I had to close that chapter in my life.”
Her podcast gave her the perfect chance to reopen that chapter. When asked about her goals and hopes for the podcast, Blain said, “My hope is to not only invite people to sit with us, but to equip people to sit with others.”
Blain credits her “passion for encouragement from [her] past as well as… the present class that [she’s] in” as her main reasons behind this calling.
“I’m a dreamer, that’s something you should know about me,” Blain said. “I dream big. I can dream it up and also figure out how to do it.”
