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Alumni Spotlight: Christy Kingsmill

Christy bleeds pink as the fearless leader of Team Midwest; if you don’t believe me, ask Christy to show you some 2007 NCWSA Nationals pictures. This week I had the pleasure of catching up with her for another great Alumni Spotlight!

Name: Christy Kingsmill

Applicable nicknames: Mom

Collegiate Ski team: University of Iowa

Favorite Event: Jump

Describe your ski team experience: Ski team changed my entire collegiate experience for the better! Our team was like a family that everyone looked out for everyone and we had upperclassman to help us on the water but also on campus! Helped my leadership skills and got me back into the ski community that I hadn’t been a part of since I was a child and going with my parents!

What are you doing now: I think being involved in college so much gave me the drive to go back to school and get my teachers certificate! I am also a nanny and personal assistant.

Favorite Memory: So many great ones, but I think one of the best that we were just reminiscing about at our alumni tailgate was having 9 people in Tom Stelzer’s Denali on the way to Winter Conference in Michigan. Talk about team building! I had the best seat in the house, as I got to lay down across and on top of all of the bags in the back. I got to lay down and could still see the movie we were watching!

Any advice for current skiers? Don’t let the years pass you by! Go to that extra tournament, visit your ski buddies on their campus, and stay in touch with your team after school!

How can we get more college kids involved in the sport? Making the AWSA summer tournaments just as fun. The Alumni Tournament with the team setting and the Green Lightning tournaments both add that additional element that make you excited throughout the tournaments to cheer on your team mates and not just about your own skiing. It’s hard for kids once they leave campus to find somewhere to ski and stay involved so we are working on hopefully helping make that transition easier!

Thanks to Christy for sharing her collegiate experience! If you or anyone you know would like to be featured in one of our Alumni Spotlights, please comment on our Facebook page or email alumni@ncwsa.com.

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Kathleen Nolan

I graduated from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2012. From the fall of 2016 through spring 2018 I was the primary alumni correspondent for NCWSA.com. I currently work in Chicago, IL.