The Mark White Show debuted in November 2017, and the subject of bullying has been a constant theme the radio show has tackled in the nearly seven years it has been on the airwaves.

“I know I experienced bullying when I was in school, because I was a little bit different,” White told The News Courier during an interview Tuesday, July 6. “I was raised by my grandparents and we moved a lot, so it was really hard. That’s something that I’ve shared with my listeners, and because of that, Rylee’s mom reached out to me and told me what was happening with her daughter.”

That unexpected interaction led to a remarkable act of kindness. In August 2023, White was able to connect Rylee — who was getting bullied in school — with collegiate softball players from LSU, Auburn, Alabama and UAB.

Those players sent personal video messages to Rylee, offering their encouragement to the young child who had a profound love and connection to their sport.

“Rylee actually wasn’t going to try out for her school team, because of the bullying,” White said. “But, she decided to try out once she got the video messages, and she made it. So last December, I thought that Rylee overcoming the bullying to find success would make for a really good message for kids.”

White then began to write that story, which was based on his real life experience, and utilized an illustrator, Kim Soderberg, who had been on his show before. Once they had brought the real life story to fruition, White relied on Athens resident Carissa Lovvorn, a local author and publisher, to help publish his book.

“I’m excited about what this book can do,” White said. “I’m hoping it reaches a young person that is going through their own challenges in life, and maybe it’s bullying or something else, but they know to keep pushing forward and not give up. That’s the message of this story, that’s what Rylee’s story is all about.”

White said that one of the most challenging parts of being bullied is the feeling of being alone. He emphasized that this book not only shows that kids going through rough times are not alone, and they can still succeed in spite of it.

“You are made to feel like you don’t belong, you are ostracized to feel like you don’t fit in,” White said. “It’s hard to have goals or achieve anything because you feel like you don’t deserve it. You’ve got to get past that hurdle, and the bullying may not stop, but you can keep moving forward.”

The book will launch on Saturday, Aug. 10, at the Athens-Limestone County Public Library at 10:30 a.m. White will hold a book signing during the launch party on Saturday to officially kick off his book signing tour that will take him all throughout North Alabama.

On Saturday, Aug. 17, White will travel to the Rogersville Public Library, then he will be at JM’s Journey fundraising event in Rogersville on Saturday, Aug. 24. For more information on The Mark White Show and his upcoming book tour, visit https://www.themarkwhiteshow.com/.

“I’ve had a lot of people already pre-order the book, so I’m just hoping people show up to buy the event at the launch,” White said. “I’m not going to quit promoting this book and this story, we need to combat bullying and because suicide should never be the answer. Our kids need to know that they can make it through and that they are not alone.”

White held a fundraiser that raised more than $700 to put his books into public libraries and school libraries at no charge. White also said he hoped to take his book into the schools to talk about it and the important lesson it teaches.