"I changed my last name to a random one on Google – it was the best decision"
- 7 months ago
A woman changed her last name to a random one she liked on Google – and says it was the "best decision".
Lacy Beckett, 24, had a troubled childhood and wanted to change her surname after falling pregnant aged 21 - saying she didn’t want her child to have a "tainted" name.
Lacy had already been using her middle name ‘Nicole’ on social media but discovered it wasn’t hard to change her last name officially.
She Googled 'last names' and settled on Beckett – as it was a surname that wasn’t too common, unique or hard to spell.
Lacy officially changed her name in July 2021 and says it was the “best decision”.
Sadly, she lost her unborn baby just a few weeks later, at seven weeks, but Lacy is still glad she has changed her name so she could figure out who she wanted to be.
Lacy, a pre-school teacher, from St Louis, Missouri, US, said: “I got pregnant at 21 and I was planning on giving them my last name.
“I didn’t want something beautiful in my life to be tainted by my childhood.
“I discovered it’s not that hard to change your last name.
“I Googled last names. I wanted to pick something that was not super common but not hard to spell or hard to say.
“I got it down to Bennett or Beckett.
“I decided on the day I turned in the paperwork on Beckett.
“A lot of people thing that it’s weird but it’s the best decision.”
Lacy had to fill out three pieces of paperwork and went to court to speak before a judge to allow her decision to change her name.
She said: “I was so excited.
"I came straight out the courthouse and to change my name on my driver’s licence.”
To help pick a name from her Google search, she tested names out on friends – to see if they would be hard to say or spell.
She said: “I originally liked Maverick, but people wouldn’t know how to spell it.”
Since changing her name Lacy has been through several miscarriages and a break-up but is now “focusing” on her.
Lacy said: “I’ve put my focus on my work.
“My life revolved around finding a man to have a child.
“My name now has a lot more meaning than just changing it. It’s figuring out who I want to be.”
Lacy is one of seven children and often felt like “just a number in the household”.
She said: “It’s about becoming my own person, doing my own thing and focusing on myself.
“My friends started referring to me as Lacy Beckett straight away.
“It felt really natural.”
Lacy still has her heart set on being a mum but has plans to do it alone if she doesn’t find “the one”.
She said: “I feel my purpose is to be a mum.
“I’m putting my focus on my career but after that if I’m not in a relationship with someone who I think is ‘the one’ I’m going to pursue it on my own.”
Lacy Beckett, 24, had a troubled childhood and wanted to change her surname after falling pregnant aged 21 - saying she didn’t want her child to have a "tainted" name.
Lacy had already been using her middle name ‘Nicole’ on social media but discovered it wasn’t hard to change her last name officially.
She Googled 'last names' and settled on Beckett – as it was a surname that wasn’t too common, unique or hard to spell.
Lacy officially changed her name in July 2021 and says it was the “best decision”.
Sadly, she lost her unborn baby just a few weeks later, at seven weeks, but Lacy is still glad she has changed her name so she could figure out who she wanted to be.
Lacy, a pre-school teacher, from St Louis, Missouri, US, said: “I got pregnant at 21 and I was planning on giving them my last name.
“I didn’t want something beautiful in my life to be tainted by my childhood.
“I discovered it’s not that hard to change your last name.
“I Googled last names. I wanted to pick something that was not super common but not hard to spell or hard to say.
“I got it down to Bennett or Beckett.
“I decided on the day I turned in the paperwork on Beckett.
“A lot of people thing that it’s weird but it’s the best decision.”
Lacy had to fill out three pieces of paperwork and went to court to speak before a judge to allow her decision to change her name.
She said: “I was so excited.
"I came straight out the courthouse and to change my name on my driver’s licence.”
To help pick a name from her Google search, she tested names out on friends – to see if they would be hard to say or spell.
She said: “I originally liked Maverick, but people wouldn’t know how to spell it.”
Since changing her name Lacy has been through several miscarriages and a break-up but is now “focusing” on her.
Lacy said: “I’ve put my focus on my work.
“My life revolved around finding a man to have a child.
“My name now has a lot more meaning than just changing it. It’s figuring out who I want to be.”
Lacy is one of seven children and often felt like “just a number in the household”.
She said: “It’s about becoming my own person, doing my own thing and focusing on myself.
“My friends started referring to me as Lacy Beckett straight away.
“It felt really natural.”
Lacy still has her heart set on being a mum but has plans to do it alone if she doesn’t find “the one”.
She said: “I feel my purpose is to be a mum.
“I’m putting my focus on my career but after that if I’m not in a relationship with someone who I think is ‘the one’ I’m going to pursue it on my own.”