Williams finalist for Youth Athlete of the Year

ASHRIDGE - A Winston County sixth grader needs your votes to be named the top youth athlete in the nation.
Amelia Williams, 11, of Ashridge, is one the top 5  finalists in the nation for the Youth Athlete of the Year Award.  A partnership that includes Sports Illustrated, V Foundation (Victory Over Cancer), 3Brand (NFL Quarterback Russell Wilson’s company) and Why Not You Foundation, candidates for Youth Athlete of the Year are hand-selected for the competiton, with voting taking place online via Facebook.  The winner receives $25,000 to go toward college.  
Williams’ mother, Jessica Hale, found out about the contest online and though Amelia, who is homeschooled via Frontier Girls/Quest Homeschool Troop and Bearfoot University Forest School, would be a perfect candidate for the honor.
“We are always looking for things to encourage our kids to grow and learn,” Hale said.
While any child can be entered into the running for Youth Athlete of the Year, organizers really look closely at youth who are especially passionate about their chosen sport.  For Amelia, that sport is taekwondo.
“Amelia has been taking taekwondo now for over four years,”  Hale said.
Amelia’s younger sister, Zoey, initially showed an interest in the sport.  Their father, the late Gregory Williams Jr., thought it would be a great idea for the girls and their mom to all take part in, since it’s a family sport.  Amelia has excelled at the sport and is now a 2nd degree black belt, as is her mom and sister.  Through taekwondo, Hale met her husband, Jeff Hale, who is a 2nd degree senior black belt.  The family also includes Amelia’s little brother, Gabriel, who began taekwondo when he was 5.  Now age 7, Gabriel is a blue belt.  The family takes classes at Trent Grams in Florence.
“Amelia loves tournaments where she can meet and make new friends and teach others to defend themselves, both older and younger alike,”  Jessica said.   “She loves the fact that taekwondo is a family sport and that it is up to her how good she can become.”
Amelia also loves team sports.  She plays rec volleyball in Muscle Shoals.  Her cousin Sarah Crumpton, is her coach and Jessica is her assistant coach.  In addition, Amelia has played youth soccer and baseball, as well as done gymnastics, ballet and tap dance.
“She loves sports like soccer and volleyball where she gets to work as a team,”  Jessica said.
The latest round of voting is taking place through September 4.  Anyone wanting to vote for Amelia can go to https://athleteoftheyear.org/2025/amelia-c59e and click vote.
Voters will see several different tab choices for their vote.  A single vote, which is free, will take the voter to a link to log into their Facebook page for confirmation of their identity before the vote will be tabulated.  
There are also opportunities to give Amelia more than one vote at a time by making donations to the V Foundation for Cancer Research and the Why Not You Foundation.  Founded in 2014 bu Russell Wilson and his wife, singer/actress Ciara, the  Why Not You Foundation is dedicated to fighting poverty through education.
Having an opportunity to raise funding for cancer research is near and dear to Amelia and Jessica’s hearts, seeing how the disease has ravaged their family.
“My sister, Jennifer Crumpton, passed away from breast cancer.  Amelia has had two great-grandparents and numerous great-aunts and uncles to pass due to cancer. With Youth Athlete of the Year, any paid votes go to help with cancer research, so I see this as helping Amelia, along with the fight for cancer,”  Jessica said.
Amelia hopes to have a career in robotics.
“She wants to go to robotics camp and eventually into robotics in college.  She loves visiting the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, where she has seen the impact robotics have made in others’ lives.  She loves to help others,”  Jessica said.
Jessica’s grandparents are Edward and the late Renett Knox, of Haleyville, Gregory Williams Sr., of Phil Campbell and Linda Tompkins, of Aberdeen, Miss.