By Victoria Lavelle

Some students know 26-year-old Michael Lounsbury as the DCCC college guy walking across campus between classes offering advice to his peers.

What some students may not know about Lounsbury is that he is now the author of a newly published book.

In his memoir, “Never Accept Defeat,” Lounsbury recounts the struggles throughout his lifetime and what it took to help him overcome and recover from those challenges.

By sharing intimate details about the difficulties in his life, Lounsbury hopes it will help others facing similar dilemmas in their lives.

“We are all going through something different and everyone’s life experiences are unique to their situation,” Lounsbury explained. “‘Never Accept Defeat’ is about the challenges in my life, but I hope it will help others. Regardless of anyone’s struggles and tribulations, they can still achieve greatness too by never accepting defeat.”

Additionally, Lounsbury explained who he hopes the self-help book will reach and the message he hopes it will deliver to readers.

“The book is for people who think as though their lives are okay, when in reality, life is really not going well for them,” Lounsbury explained. “It’s for all those who want help but are too afraid to ask for help. I want readers to know that it’s okay to say that you’re not okay.”

According to Lounsbury, self-worth is something that he has wrestled with throughout his life. Furthermore, he confessed that he still struggles with it today.

“I am tall and confident, yet many people don’t realize that even I have questioned my own value and have also struggled with self-image,” Lounsbury explained.

“I hope the book makes people realize that they aren’t alone, to discover their self-value, and to find their purpose in life.”

Never Accept Defeat is 148 pages from beginning to end. The memoir highlights short stories that are real events throughout Lounsbury’s life that are scripted in chronological order across 34 chapters leading up to the climax.

“There were distinct things which happened in my life that all deserved their own chapters,” Lounsbury explained. “They all played such a profound role together collectively, so I figured if I merged them all together then it would have stepped on the overall message.”

At DCCC, Lounsbury is not the average college student, as he is a triple major in psychology, business and communication arts.

In the professional world, Lounsbury is the benefits coordinator at Communications Test Design, Inc, yet still finds time to be a full-time dad, husband at home and an author on his spare time.

Still, as he explained, it is not his college achievements or career that define him, rather, it’s the trials and tribulations throughout his life that have molded him into the self-published author and aspiring motivational speaker he has become today.

“At a young age, I learned how to persevere and be resilient,” Lounsbury said. “It was a rocky road when the only constant thing in my life was change. Life was lonely and demeaning, but I adapted, I overcame, and I beat the odds. I chose the road less traveled and I never accepted defeat.”

“I couldn’t understand why my friends had parents who loved and supported them, yet my parents never offered me the love or support that I wanted and needed,” Lounsbury explained.

“Today, I completely cut all ties with my parents.”

In 2014, Lounsbury joined the U.S. Army where he completed basic training at Camp Henry in Fort Jackson, S.C. and he spent the following year stationed overseas in South Korea.

Lounsbury described the time he served in the army as being rewarding and influential. He explained that he did very well physically and mentally, and he attributed the discipline learned in the military for shaping him into the adult man that he has become today.

“I didn’t have a bond with my biological family, so the military gave that to me,” Lounsbury explained. “I joined at a lonely time in my life, so the U.S. Army became my family. I even met my wife while serving, and we both eventually settled down in Delaware County where her family is rooted.”

Lounsbury outlined his childhood as being a turbulent time in life when he struggled to find love and support from his parents.

Though faced with hurdles throughout his early life, Lounsbury explained that he often found contentment in pastime by reading books.

“As a kid, I loved to read,” Lounsbury explain. “However, sometimes when chapters were too long it seemed as if I wasn’t making much progress. That inspired me to keep the chapters short and to the point in the book which makes it an easy read for anyone.”

The motivation behind the book, as Lounsbury explained it, came from the overwhelming desire he had to help others who are grappling with day-to-day life.

“I felt as though I should sit down and write the book to help others,” Lounsbury explained. “Though the book took roughly a year and a half to write, I wrote the majority of the book in less than two months during restless late nights and after dinner.”

Before the book’s release, Lounsbury was faced with financial obstacles in order to get the book published and acquire the proper marketing tools.

Therefore, Lounsbury launched a GoFundMe account in September that raised money to put toward those costs and other expense related to the books release. Thus far, he says that he has been extremely appreciative for the support.

One of the contributors on GoFundMe, Reggie Diggins, donated money and offered his moral support in addition.

“I love you, bro,” Diggins posted to Lounsbury’s GoFundMe page. “I’ve always got your back. Please help change people lives. You have a voice and you are making sure it is heard. I’m standing behind you and I support your efforts 110 percent bro.”

When asked how many personal secrets the memoir reveals about him, Lounsbury replied, “Holy Crap — I can’t even begin to put a number on it.”

The memoir was released worldwide on August 26, 2019 and climbed within the top 18 percent most sold books on Amazon globally, according to Lounsbury.

Lounsbury’s memoir, “Never Accept Defeat,” is available for purchase at Barnes and Noble, Walmart, and Amazon.

Contact Victoria Lavelle at communitarian@mail.dccc.edu