Jackson Sexton

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Camden Metheny

Junior Jackson Sexton performs as Fergie during the recent homecoming talent show.

Stephanie Atchley

ISLAND

“I’ve been vegan since August of 2014, so about a year and a half.  I think it’s important to show respect to myself and to the animals. I do not support the industry that processes meat and dairy because I feel like it’s inhumane the way that they go about it. I didn’t think that it was necessary to eat meat, and I figured that it would be healthier. I have lost around 20 pounds. It took around three months to lose all of it. I lost a lot of fat, but people worry about me losing muscle, which I really haven’t. I definitely eat more stuff with protein and with less cholesterol in it, so I’m more lean than I used to be.  

“It is a lot of trial and error, and it’s still going on now. There are a lot of experimentations that go along with it. It’s hard trying to find animal product free ingredients, and around here, there aren’t a lot of restaurants that I can go to.

“What I do reflects on how I believe, and if people believe differently, that’s okay with me. My opinions go for me and me only because they are my opinions. People have gotten legitimately angry at me about being vegan. I’ve been called just down right stupid for being vegan. I’m a constantly changing person, and I don’t know how I’m going to feel in the future. The future is always changing. Right now it is pretty important.”