Jul 15, 2021
Hear how my Jamaican cousin, soccer superstar, @Shavine Webster, got to play on a male school soccer team at ten years old. She knew that soccer was her future and the means to a better life. In high school, she played for Lennon’s male soccer team and then helped to form the first female soccer team for the school…and then went on to the Jamaican national soccer team at 15 years old! Shavine was groundbreaking! We hear about girls doing that now, but imagine being the only female in your neighborhood, in your school, in Jamaica, a country that doesn’t tolerate anyone who is not a part of the “norm!” She had to be better than best, so at the top of her game, the boys recommended her to their male coach for the male team. Wow!
She tolerated asking to be “searched” to see if she was really a guy because she could keep up with the boys both in stamina and skill. Through all that, her mom has never seen her play the game. She got motivation from the boys and men who recognized her skill. Her mentor was the St. Jago men’s soccer team coach and brought her to train with them; however, he would not allow her to play on the team.
Through her mentor, one of her teachers, and the help of others, Shavine got a soccer scholarship to come to the US and took the opportunity to immigrate to play in Alabama at Faulkner University on the girl’s team. Understand the difficulty immigrant athletes have in the US since they are not supposed to work. What does an athlete do when they don’t have money to return to their country? Find out! Shavine became the first person in her family to go to, and complete, college.
Today, after being hurt in college, losing her scholarship, finding God and spiritually, getting jobs, Shavine graduated from Bacone College. She is the CEO of her own company, Fitter Than Your Average LLC, specializing in in-person and virtual personal training, coaching soccer camps, and providing super-nice workout apparel. She is also an essential worker at a hospital in the Bronx and will be working towards a Master's degree in Occupational Therapy.
I love this podcast because I get to hear transformational stories like this – I learned a lot about someone who is a part of my family! Listen Here! Give us feedback and if you like what you hear, Subscribe to future podcasts.