Kay arrives at Bond Park Community Center ready to play.
Ramp set up and it’s ‘game on’ for 2 hours with her teammates and coaches at Bridge II Sports Boccia practice.
“I enjoy the camaraderie with the other Flamethrowers and being a part of a team on Sunday afternoon before the work week starts.”

And when that work week starts, it’s ‘game on’  again — this time as the Co-Founder and Board Chair of non-profit Youth LEAD NC. Youth LEAD NC equips young people, 30 years old and younger, with the skills and support that they need to lead full lives as individuals with disabilities and become change agents in their communities.

As a young woman with cerebral palsy, Kay has been involved with the disability community her whole life.  But when she was 15 she discovered her calling and shifted her involvement into advocacy.

“I attended the North Carolina Youth Leadership Forum (NCYLF). It was the first time that I was around other young people with disabilities who shared similar interests. Together we could talk about the challenges that we faced collectively as individuals with disabilities, which sparked my passion for disability rights.”

This experience cascaded into a wave of opportunities to educate others about disability and challenge perceptions from her high school classroom, to NC State University, and now as a career.

She is currently working to ignite that ‘spark’ for other young people with disabilities.  Youth LEAD NC is hosting ‘Zooming with the NCYLF’ a free eight week web series for youth with disabilities ages 15 to 30 that will focus on advocacy, individual goals, leadership, independent living skills, making change in the community…and of course getting to know one another and building friendships.

‘Zooming with the NCYLF’ will take place later this summer. For more information and application visit ylfnc.org  . Applications for participation are due by May 17, 2020.

Note: ‘Zooming with the NCYLF’ is not a Bridge II Sports program.  BIIS is passing this information on as a possible opportunity in our community. 

picture of Kay at Boccia practice

“Bridge II Sports and Youth LEAD NC have similar goals for changing perceptions of people with disabilities and finding solutions so individuals with disabilities can fully participate in everyday life activities. I believe exercise and recreation are important aspects of a well balanced lifestyle. …The community that exists at Bridge II Sports wants athletes with disabilities to not only succeed during the game but in other aspects of life.”

We like the way you think Kay! 🙂
So grateful to have you in our Bridge II Sports community- a strong advocate leading by example and working hard to create change.
Can’t wait to get ‘back to work’ on the Boccia court!