SHREVEPOR. La. -- More than seven months after 14-year-old Cali Agent was struck and killed while crossing Hearne Avenue in Shreveport, her mother is transforming unimaginable grief into poetry, advocacy and a mission to improve pedestrian safety.
For Autumn Agent, writing became a lifeline after losing her daughter in December.
"It started just me trying to ground myself because losing her was just so tragic and devastating," Agent said.
Cali, whose nickname was "Kitty," was hit by a vehicle while attempting to cross Hearne Avenue. Agent said the trauma of seeing her daughter's lifeless body left her searching for a way to process her emotions.
She found that outlet through poetry.
"I will get up when I want to stay down. I will carry your name like a jewel in my crown. For you, I will fight until something has changed. Until no other mother is left to deal with this pain," one of her poems reads.
Agent quickly compiled her writings into a book of poetry, making it available initially as a free download on Amazon in hopes that other grieving parents could find comfort in its pages. She has since published two more collections.
"Writing's always been something that's cathartic for me throughout my whole life," Agent said. "When I lost Cali, it was just natural for me to start documenting those feelings."
In the months since her daughter's death, Agent has focused on projects that she hopes will create positive change. In addition to writing, she has launched a nonprofit organization, Cali's Crossings, and is organizing a reflective gear drive to help students stay visible as they head back to school.
She also plans to advocate for safety improvements near the site of the crash, including the installation of a crosswalk to help pedestrians cross Hearne Avenue more safely, especially those needing to wait for the bus stop at that corner.
Agent said she is working with a Mothers Against Drunk Driving advocate to better understand why no charges have been filed against the driver involved in the crash.
"There's this purpose in pain," she said. "If I can give a voice to somebody that doesn't have that voice or give somebody another way to look at things, or even make the changes that need to be made with these pedestrian deaths, then it's worth putting myself out there."
She was also grateful when school administrators recognized Cali during a middle school graduation ceremony, honoring the milestone her daughter should have reached.
"The order was broken," Agent said. "No parent should bury their child. I'm still her parent. I'm still her mother. I just don't have her here in a physical form anymore. But I have so much love for her still that I have to have somewhere for it to go."
Information about Cali's Crossings is available through this link.