Today I did some reflecting on my career. I thought about the places my career took me. The highs. I spent some time thinking about how I didn’t get there on my own. So many strong women helped me get there.

Today, being International Women’s Day, I’ve been thinking about all of the powerful women who inspire me, and who have also empowered me. There are so many times I felt inspired by the women before and around me, from the time I was watching them on television as a kid to bowling alongside them. 

I was honored to receive an invitation many years ago to the Women’s Sports Foundation Gala. This gala was a celebration of women in sports. All sports. I was one of the few female bowlers there representing bowling. I was so incredibly honored to be there representing my sport. Even more than that though, looking around the room to see so much female greatness in one room was beyond incredible. Gymnastics, volleyball, tennis stars.

There are many females that have inspired and empowered me in my career. I thought a few were worth mentioning.

Kelly Kulick.
I wrote before about how I think Kelly is a superhero. In Abu Dhabi, when I was 19, she was a teammate and won the Gold medal in singles. It’s the moment that inspired me to want to feel that one day. She also was the first woman to win on the men’s tour. Kelly broke the bowling glass ceiling.

Leanne Hulsenberg and Kim Kearney
I watched these ladies bowl on TV a lot. They won a lot of professional tour titles. I have vivid memories of watching them and thinking, if I could choose how to build my game, I wanted to bowl like them. I want to be able to hook the ball like they did.  They were just really great competitors. Fast forward a few years and we were on Team USA together. I couldn’t believe it when my inspirations turned into my teammates. 

Jeri Edwards
As my coach on Team USA, she just really empowered me to be my best when things weren’t going well. Her perspective was magical. Jeri was so positive, always with a smile on her face, and had an energy unlike any I’d experienced in a coach. As a Team USA coach behind me, she always gave me so much confidence. Sometimes I wonder, would I have been able to do what I did without a coach like that, specifically an extraordinary female one? I feel very grateful to have had her in my corner. We had a lot of wonderful bowling moments together but my number one memory is when we won the World Cup together in Venezuela. 

Liz Johnson
I do believe Liz is the greatest of all time. I can’t think of anyone who has been as dominant as Liz, as long as she has been. Liz has showed the bowling world that you don’t need to be fancy to be iconic. Her game has stood the test of time. Liz is another bowler with whom I have had the honor of competing with on Team USA.

Outside of bowling, I look to Billy Jean King as inspiration. She is a tennis player, but she really paved the way for women in sports. She was an advocate for gender equality and a pioneer for it in the early 70s when that was quite unheard of. But she wasn’t afraid to go against the grain and fight for women’s equality, especially in sport. Her efforts really dripped into all sports. She was one of the women who paved the way for us in bowling.

It’s important for women right now, particularly professional female athletes, to realize that what they’re doing is bigger than their sport. It transcends what is straight in front of them. They are doing so much more than just competing. They are inciting the generations coming up after them to dare to do more and be more.

It makes me wonder, what kind of way can I pave for the generation coming up behind me? What can I do to help them pave the way for others after them too?

To me, influence not only comes on the lanes, but also BEYOND the lanes. As I raise Jersey I am intentional about the lessons that I teach her so that she knows she has the power to influence and impact. 

Now, if you’ve made it to the end of this blog, shout out a female in your life who had an extraordinary impact in your life.