Who is Elizabeth Lauren Griswold?
What’s her story?

From Elizabeth – There are two passions that define who I am:

1) My belief that there can be a prosperous world through morals that benefit the majority rather than corruption that elevate the few. I am determined to live a life that proves it is possible while working to improve our country, if not world, in order to make that an easier thing for everyone to do.

2) Storytelling and the messages with positive impacts that I can promote as a storyteller, no matter the medium that may be through. Having studied and loved media, especially filmmaking and content creation, that is usually my preferred medium although I am experienced in broadcasting, podcasting, writing, painting, and almost any other art you can tell a story through too. (Take a look at my resume 😉.) 

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Born and raised as a Southern All-American girl, her roots begin in the North. Elizabeth hailed from Atlanta, Georgia as an Olympics baby born during Atlanta’s own 1996 summer Olympics (on July 1, 1996 to be exact) to parents from Minnesota. Every two years when the Olympics rolls back around, she is jokingly reminded yet again that she ruined her parents’ chances of seeing the “Dream Team”. Apparently newborn babies need a ticket to get in the stadium too. In 1999, their little family grew a bit bigger with the addition of Elizabeth’s younger sister, Erin. She would complete the family of four along with their toy poodle puppy, Lexi (whose real name was “Rolex” since her dad wanted a “watch dog”), and maltipoo, Miley (yeah, long story…).

Their suburban life in Georgia was pleasant. During this time, Elizabeth would unknowingly discover her love for storytelling through childhood games of play-pretend. Whether it be how she played “house” with friends at pre-school, stayed in character during her daily trips to the dress-up closet (yes, she had so many costumes that they needed their own closet), or how she went into elaborate detail when playing with her Barbies (she even dedicated a whole room to make a town in it for them). There was no doubt that she took playing pretend to a whole other level than the other girls. She had originally dreamed of being a singer like Britney Spears, but it was not until she and her family moved to a suburb of Dallas, Texas in 2004 (3rd grade) that she put a word to the actual desire embedded within her: acting. As the years progressed, she would increasingly realize that she was an aspiring actress ever since she could barely remember as if it was in her DNA.

Unfortunately, fear held her back from actually pursuing these dreams during the years between elementary school and high school. During this time, she dabbled in years of dance, soccer, and other sports/activities. None of them ended up sticking, but her passion for acting still burned from within. Little did she know, a huge part of that “fear” was due to a disorder called Hypothyroidism, or an underactive thyroid. On the first day of her junior year of high school, she finally was diagnosed with a moderately severe case of it. As more tests were performed, it would be determined that she had a chronic autoimmune system disease called Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis that caused the dysfunction along with a goiter. Adapting to the new lifestyle that the disease and dysfunctions brought was tough on her, but it allowed her to mature more than other kids her age and build herself up against the struggles of the world. Challenging conflicts revolving her health (including trials with anxiety and depression) still arise from time to time, but she chooses to use the experiences as inspiration and motivation for her work. Most of all: empathy for the people around her going through their own trials, especially when their representations are not properly serving them when they are deeply in need such as Texas’ lack of benefits. However, she prides herself in keeping an optimistic view on life throughout it all to keep up the “Good Fight”.

In the pride-filled, football-devoted town of Southlake, Texas, it was only natural to have a challenging academic curriculum. When the students weren’t bleeding emerald green and cheering on their beloved Carroll Dragons, they were working hard to be able to stay afloat in the competitive community. The pressure may have been overwhelming at times, but it was Southlake (and her parents) that built Elizabeth into the goal-oriented person constantly looking for a new challenge to tackle that she is. One of Elizabeth’s personal favorite things about Carroll was their art program. It was here that she discovered her love for art through painting, drawing, and photography classes all of which were taught by such fascinating and talented artists themselves. She added “artist” to her identity and committed to pursuing work both behind the camera as well as in front by applying to colleges to study the cinematic arts.

In June of 2014, Elizabeth finally walked across the stage wearing an emerald green cap and gown as a high school graduate. She packed her bags and headed to Norman, Oklahoma to become a Sooner at the University of Oklahoma. The day that she attended her very first class as an official film student (majoring in Film & Media Studies – College of Arts & Sciences) marked her first official step towards achieving her lifelong dreams. It also marked the start of her job as a production assistant at OU’s athletic department’s broadcasting (via Fox Sports channels), SoonerVision, when her future boss came to speak about the position before the start of class. Perhaps her broadcasting internship during high school or the fact that SoonerVision’s very production (the 2014 Spring Game in which she first toured the campus) influenced her final decision to go to OU foreshadowed that moment, either way SV led to her adding on yet another degree. Double-majoring in Creative Media Productions through Gaylord College of Journalism & Mass Communications allowed her to study even more behind-the-camera aspects along with the business and psychological studies of the trade that interests her.

However, experiencing 2016’s election plus the presidency that followed from the outside looking in as a young adult who finally started to understand the ways of our world and, specifically, the American government, lead to a passion for fairness that was always underlying but overlooked as she was just starting to realize how to play her part. Once the pandemic hit, she put all of the newfound free time into remote volunteering for the 2020 Elections. Elizabeth finally realized that was a profession of its own she could and should work in. She had to finally live out the saying “it starts with us” to its full meaning to establish its effectiveness. Suddenly, her priorities shifted from her lifelong love of film to making a difference through advocacy and non-profits especially for her homestate of Texas that desperately needs the help. The ultimate dream will always be the ability to combine those passions whenever possible though. For now, she is just trying to navigate those worlds to figure out how the skills and knowledge she has acquired over the years can best be of use to create a better functioning, inspiring world for as many people as possible (while hopefully creating some art and gaining even more insight along the way).

Take a look at her resume and LinkedIn to see how that is going so far… and maybe scroll through the pages of this website for a glimpse into her thoughts?