Evington girl flourishes into successful woman

Caroline Light is celebrating her accomplishments in equestrian with her parents. Photo submitted by Caroline Light.

By William Masselli

Womack Publishing

News Service

Families driving through the rural areas of Campbell County might drive by and see several young girls riding horses. The children in the backseat love the horses, and the parents admire the young girls’ enthusiasm and passion. Little did these travelers know that one day one of these young Campbell County girls would grow up to be a flourishing young woman.

Campbell County residents would be delighted to learn that an Evington woman has recently enjoyed a successful freshman year at the University of Lynchburg, a regionally accredited and nationally recognized university. Caroline Light, an Evington woman and University of Lynchburg student, has flourished into a successful young woman that is obtaining success in equestrian, academic studies, and accounting internships thanks to all of her community leaders in Campbell County.

“When the announcer announces, ‘Caroline Light of Evington, Virginia,’ I feel a sense of pride, and a sense of duty to represent my hometown that means so much to me,” stated Caroline Light.

In equestrian at the University of Lynchburg, Caroline Light competed and made key contributions to the University of Lynchburg’s Equestrian Team, a team that won the National College Equestrian Association (NCEA) championship in 2023.

In fact, Light views winning the NCEA Championship in 2023 with her team as one of her favorite moments at the University of Lynchburg because she saw similarities between her team winning the national championship and her hometown fundraising to build a new library.

In both instances and goals, Light and her community or teammates faced their fair share of doubters. Light was impressed with how the Evington community and her University of Lynchburg Equestrian teammates responded to these doubters. Both entities sought support and worked hard for a common goal which is why Light’s town was able to successfully construct a new library and her team was able to win a national championship.

“It showcased a cumulative sum of everyone’s efforts and teamwork, and both made me feel incredibly proud to be a member of the team and community,” said Light.

In her academic studies, Light is majoring in accounting, a very rigorous curriculum, while obtaining equal to or greater than a 3.75 GPA. This accomplishment enabled Caroline Light to be recognized on the President’s List at the University of Lynchburg for the Spring Semester of 2023.

Most of this success is thanks to Light’s ambitious attitude, attention to detail, and parental support. Light is a strong believer that every day holds another opportunity for someone to become an even better version of themselves relative to the day before. This belief fuels her ambitious attitude.

Light cares a lot about completing a task and taking great care of attention to detail. In fact, after Light and her teammates won the national championship, Light became more sought after from the media. She decided to confide with her English Professor, Dr. Chidsey Dickson, regarding how to answer questions from reporters in a grammatically correct and eloquent way.

Coming from a small town, she was excited to receive the attention, but she knew that she had to handle it in the proper way. She knew that she had to be detailed and thorough in all her answers, just like how she is on her accounting homework, English essays, and oral presentations.

Regardless of how Light handled the media attention, one thing was clear and that was that her parents would always support her.

“My parents have always supported me and told me to follow my dreams, no matter how hard the work might be,” said Light.

Even more impressive, Light is already enjoying success in terms of gaining vocational experience. Light currently aspires to be an accountant on Wall Street. This summer, she recently obtained an accounting internship for Brown Edwards, a regional accounting firm. She has done the following tasks: scanning, preparing tax returns, working as a team with the other interns, and many more things. After she graduates from the University of Lynchburg, she will be trying to pass several accounting certification tests like the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) test or Certified Management Accountant (CMA) test.

While passing CPA or CMA exams can be a daunting task, Light and her parents feel confident that her upbringing in Campbell County has prepared her for this journey.

In fact, Light, her parents, and the community have been tested before.

“A key example of this are the dreaded phone calls of the cows being out,” stated Light.

Light, at an early age, was able to lend a helping hand to her parents and the community whenever these calls occurred, and she saw others step up to help. In neighbors’ minds, Light has passed many tests before, and people are confident that with more hard work, Light will become a successful accountant very shortly after she graduates from the University of Lynchburg.

Light and her family are grateful for the Campbell County area for preparing Light to experience all these successes.

“Growing up in Altavista and the surrounding area, I have been able to see what being a true member of the community entails,” added Light.

Light and her family also heavily recommend that other Campbell County students choose the University of Lynchburg because it is a university that cares deeply about the people in Campbell County.

When Light was in high school, she created a college list, and the University of Lynchburg was her top choice due to how much the school loves giving back to the community.

“Any local students should choose the University of Lynchburg due to their incredible academics, support, and community involvement,” stated Light.

If you are interested in learning more about Light, please contact her at [email protected].

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