You are invited to the 12th Annual Women’s Day Luncheon
11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. | The Country Club of Jackson Ballroom
At just 17 years old, Lulu Gribbin is a powerful model for resilience and purpose, channeling her life-altering shark attack experience into actions aimed at making our world a safer, better place.
Lulu’s survivor story began on June 7, 2024. While diving for sand dollars with friends on Florida’s Gulf Coast, she was attacked by a bull shark, severing her left hand and part of her right leg. Thanks to the talents of nearby strangers who quickly responded to her urgent situation in the water and on the beach, Lulu was airlifted to a Pensacola hospital where her surgeon’s battlefield experience led him to make the difficult but life-saving decision to amputate her leg.
After waking from the first of many lifesaving surgeries, Lulu’s first words were “I MADE IT”—a statement that has set the tone for her remarkable journey of recovery, strength, and tenacity.
Once stabilized, Lulu relocated to Charlotte, NC and was admitted to OrthoCarolina’s Reconstructive Center for Lost Limbs. There, she gained access to cutting-edge virtual reality (VR) therapy and other rehabilitation treatments that allowed her to walk out of the hospital after only 77 days—a milestone that typically takes amputees a year or more to achieve—and returned home to Birmingham, AL with a prosthetic arm and leg.
Full of determination, Lulu is back in school and has reclaimed her athleticism, earned her driver’s license, and become an advocate for other young amputees.
Lulu’s tenacity doesn’t stop with her own recovery. When she learned that another woman was attacked by the same shark only 45 minutes before her own attack, Lulu contacted her state representative, Rep. David Faulkner. She worked with him to pass the Lulu Gribbin Shark Alert System Act, a law that provides for a real-time geocentric cell phone alert system for shark sightings and attacks in Alabama.
The Alabama legislation has also served as a blueprint at the federal level. In July 2025, the United States Senate unanimously passed S.1003, the bipartisan bill known as Lulu’s Law, which is now awaiting action in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Lulu also founded the Lulu Strong Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit born out of a desire to improve access to advanced prosthetics and therapeutic solutions for all amputees. For most people who have lost a limb, acclimating to a life reliant on prosthetics is an arduous process full of pain and roadblocks; the path to recovery is often limited not by will, but by outdated tools and limited resources. The foundation focuses on accelerating progress and affordability of AI-powered prosthetics, VR therapy, and other emerging technologies that restore confidence and independence to amputees.
Lulu’s experience, coupled with her inherent competitive nature, intelligence, gratitude, and faith, makes her a gifted speaker, captivating audiences with her confidence and emotional clarity. She has spoken before the Alabama State Legislature, at TEDx Youth, been featured on ABC’s Good Morning America and Nightline, and spoken to crowds of up to 19,000 people.
Lulu is currently a junior at Mountain Brook High School. If she’s not out on the links showing up all the other golfers, she’s probably water skiing, running, or enjoying time with friends and family.
Register
By registering, you agree to be billed later or you can mail a check to 285 Marketridge Drive, Ridgeland, MS 39157 (made payable to Century Club Charities).