Carey Link

Carey Link (’08, BA, Psychology), 2019 UAH Alumni of Achievement Award honoree.

Carey Link

Carey Link embraces her fighting spirit and charges on. The petite UAH alumna is blessed with a fierce determination to battle through any challenges put before her: including cerebral palsy and metastatic breast cancer.

As an undergraduate at UAH, Link never wavered from her strong desire to earn a degree in psychology. She first became interested in psychology and counseling after taking a class in her junior year of high school. The former Army brat and civil servant is currently pursuing a master’s in professional counseling. "The greatest lesson I learned from my university education that has influenced and encouraged my career is that we must use knowledge to grow as people and be empowered to find our own solutions to problems," Link said.

"I’m honored and humbled to be selected as a UAH Alumni of Achievement Award recipient. Like many of us, I often don’t realize the positive impact I have on others," said Link. "None of us accomplishes anything alone. I credit the faculty, staff, and students at UAH with helping to instill in me the confidence to achieve my goals and continue learning," she added.

Although wheelchair dependent, Link’s independence blossomed while she was a student at the university. She blazed a trail for herself and other physically disabled students by leading the charge for equal access to buildings, services, and activities available to her able-bodied peers.

As she reflects on her time at UAH, Link said she was most impressed by her first days at the university during student orientation. "I knew instantly that I would enjoy being a part of the UAH community. The students, faculty, and staff were kind, engaging, and genuinely welcomed me to the university. During this time, my peers also encouraged me to be a UAH student orientation counselor."

In recent years, Link has turned to her limitless talent for writing poetry. Her 2016 book, Awakening to Holes in the Arc of Sun was named one of three finalists for The Alabama State Poetry Society’s (ASPS) Book of the Year Award (2016). The full-length poetry collection about polar opposites won second place in the ASPS Book of the Year contest. Her poetry has appeared in local, regional, national and international publications including NOALA Magazine, Birmingham Poetry Review, Poem, The Birmingham Arts Journal, Whatever Remembers Us: An Anthology of Alabama Poetry, Hospital Drive, Survivor’s Review, Months to Years and The Allegheny Review.

Her first poetry chapbook entitled What it Means to Climb a Tree was published in 2011. Link said while it is gratifying to be a published poet, her goal is to share herself with others.

Her awards and honors include The Goals 2000 Award for Service, The Scott Lawrence Rainbow Award, The President’s Award for Outstanding Community Service, United Cerebral Palsy Outstanding Achievement Award and First Runner Up for Ms. Wheelchair Alabama (scholarship awarded).

Link is the daughter of Judy and James Link (Lieutenant General U.S. Army, Retired).