Trayonna Rankins' community-centered journey began in adulthood. As she started to learn who she was and how she wanted to be as a new mother, she shared thoughts and feelings with friends. Many of them, Rankins included, realized that they were "grown women with little girl issues," Rankins said.
That realization sparked something in her, as she'd always been someone who wants "to help, to fix, to heal what's broken," she said. Inspired by that realization as well as her grandmother's example, who served as the director of a homeless shelter in South Los Angeles, Rankins started to dedicate her life to helping young girls.
Rankins founded Marching Beauties Foundation in 2011 and later established it as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in 2015, "with the hopes of building an organization committed to developing young girls," according to [the website](https://marchingbeauties.org/).
"We strive to create safe opportunities for girls in South Central Los Angeles through programs that build their emotional and mental resilience to enable them to reach their authentic, full potential," Rankins said.
In October, the Rams surprised Rankins as the 10th Rams "pLAymaker" of 2025 and presented her with a $5,000 check made out to the organization.