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Maria Payne

@mariaainn

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GA | Univ. of Alabama
@sda_uofa

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if you’ll indulge me, today is a fun personal day of celebration for me.

💌 a love letter to @uawhatsup💌

celebrating eight years of loving @uawhatsup.

And if you know, you know.

You know about the late nights, the early mornings, the questions of the day. The “quick questions” that are never quick. The group texts and friendly reminders. The running jokes. The yap sessions. The events that came together and were even better than we thought. The moments when we looked at each other and thought, there is absolutely no way we’re going to pull this off, and then we did.

But mostly, it’s all about the people. The ones in these photos and the ones who aren’t.

The students who became so much more than students. Everyone knows I am fiercely protective of our team. The ones who trust me to challenge them, to support them, to lead them through this season. The ones who ask for my advice, not quite sure if I’m going to say what they want to hear but hopefully what they need to hear. What a gift to be a small part of your UA story. Y’all have changed my life.

To the UPGG, a great privilege of my life is to get to work with each of you daily. You know how much I love you.

I say it all the time, but when I think of this job, it’s truer than ever.

What a job. What a team. What a life. ♥️

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1/2 yr 2026 ✅

devil can scrap but the Lord always wins; ur smile is evidence enough 💖

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the sights, selfies, and spontaneous side hustles of the semester.

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✨week 13/52✨a week full of up. 🤭

exec retreat - the new crew. 🎉monthly lunch date with dad, low quality picture but high quality dinner, egg hunt photo drop - give me a megaphone & i’m having a good time, celebrating all our honors day kids🏆🎉

the semester is almost over & summer is coming! we are all exhausted, but i’m so lucky to spend my days with these people.♥️ @tayloreppler + @jayleightawbush + @mogotti thanks for being the best girls anyone could work with. #iknowwhatsUP

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✨week 5/52✨ this week was a crazy one with LOTS of UP time, more training, & more of my favs.

matching beanies, lunch walks with @tayloreppler, the best soup & bread, the biggest breakfast in bed, rummikub per usual, facetime with @vivlonginoo, poptart puzzles, 6+ miles in the woods, bowlero madness, putt across the universe photo tour, judgy gertie, & the best part of my week.

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Last week, I attended the Student Demand Action Black Change Makers Summit in DC and it was so inspiring🙌🏾. For three full days, we worked work work work work work, learning about gun laws, congressional districts, and the actions we need to take when we return home to hit the pavement and make real change.

Being surrounded by passionate, young, Black, powerful minds reminded me why this work matters and the impact we can have when we show up for our communities. I can’t wait to put everything I learned into action.

Join the movement of young people working to #EndGunViolence in America: Text STUDENTS to 644-33.

#StudentDemandAction #BlackChangeMakers

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had to dress up just to go home💚

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Meet the Team Monday! Here's more of our amazing students who make University Programs what it is.

From planning events to creating inclusive spaces on campus, this team works hard to make sure there’s always something happening at the Capstone. #iknowwhatsUP

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beyond blessed for this summer 🧡

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I had the TIME OF MY LIFE this summer at Rock Eagle 🦅!
It was so much fun from the moment we became “AMIYAH,CARTER,MACKENZIE” to when I was bawling my eyes out watching my own kids leave on the bus. All of the counselors from all 3 flights have inspired me sooo much and I’m so glad I stayed involved in 4h and became an S&R. I made so many new memories and friendships. I can’t wait to visit everyone at more activities. All of these people will have a special place in my heart forever and I’m soo excited for what the future has in store... and always remember, “PEACE SIGNS THUNDERBIRDS” 🍀♥️💙♥️🍀✌🏾✌🏾

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There are not enough words to describe the summer I have had this year. Coming into the camping season I had a lot of uncertainty, but after these last 6 weeks I couldn’t have asked for anything better. My Skybird family will forever hold a special place in my heart after our first summer. From my week 1 boys to my week 4 girls, all these kids that I had the opportunity of being able to bond with, have left a lasting impact on me I feel just as much as it did the kids. Cooper in 2018 would be shocked if I said the leadership from my first camper summer got to see me in action. Cooper in 2019 would call me crazy if I said I were a camp counselor back in the land I was a camper. With that the 2025 camping season has come to a close. HMSBFL

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A simply perfect WEEK 4! The shield truly holds no weight to the meaning of camp. My most perfect girls, my favorite classes, the most fun night hike, the best wet games, the sweetest friends & visitors= my favorite week of camp ever! If camp is even a slither of joy that Jesus has here, I can’t imagine what Heaven will be🧡

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