Carol Stanley, an employee with our law firm, was honored recently as one of the 2012 River Region Volunteers of the Year. The award is sponsored by the Volunteer and Information Center and the Junior League of Montgomery, and was part of National Volunteer Week. The theme for the week was “Celebrating People in Action.” Carol became an outspoken advocate for Brain Injury Awareness and Crime Victims Rights in 2007, when her son Jason suffered a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) while a student at Auburn University.

I have learned in litigation – representing clients who have either suffered a TBI or have a family member who has – that most folks don’t really understand TBIs. A person with a TBI can suffer from depression, mood swings, have trouble concentrating, memory problems, post-traumatic stress disorder, anger and even suicidal ideation. These are often called the “silent disabilities” of TBI and they are very serious.

Carol has been very active in a number of organizations that promote head injury awareness. It is her hope that through education other people who suffer brain injuries, and their families, will get to understand the dangers of head injuries and their lasting efforts. Carol is active with the Alabama Head Injury Foundation (AHIF) and the Alabama Department of Public Health’s Head Injury Task Force. She has participated in helping promote Brain Injury Awareness Month, which is held in March each year, and is part of a speakers’ bureau that talks to groups and the media about TBI to help raise awareness.

Carol has also been active with the Crime Victims Task Force in the Attorney General’s office and with Victims of Crime and Leniency (VOCAL). She is working to strengthen penalties for juvenile offenders who cause serious physical injury, including TBI or death to their victims. Needless to say, all of us at Beasley Allen are very proud of Carol. She has been a real inspiration to lots of folks – especially those affected in some manner by a TBI – and she is certainly deserving of being honored.