Plans are already underway for spring 2017 with announcements of plans and peeps. One of the first is The Elisa Project’s 12th Annual Life Lesson Luncheon. Co-Chairs Rhonda Sargent Chambers and Melissa Rountree, along with Toni Munoz-Hunt, have arranged for the fundraiser to take place at The Belo Mansion on Friday, March 3.
Got that date down? Now, for the big news — the keynote speaker. It will be figure skating icon Nancy Kerrigan, who won the 1992 Winter Olympics bronze media and the silver medal at the 1992 World Championships. In 1993 Nancy took home the silver medal in figure skating from the Lillehammer Winter Olympics.
Following her days on the ice, she has been active in everything from the entertainment industry to corporate endorsements.
One of her most current projects is serving as executive producer and appearing in “Why Don’t You Lose 5 Pounds?” The feature-length documentary will “focus on the difficulties and pressures faced by athletes in so-called ‘lean’ sports such as figure skating.”
She brings her concern about “the struggle athletes at all levels of competition face in returning to competition after being diagnosed with an eating disorder such as anorexia or bulimia. Despite affecting more athletes than concussions, eating disorders get relatively little attention in the popular sports world. Eating disorders kill more people annually than any other mental illness, and many athletes find themselves at a higher risk for a problem.”
According to Rhonda, “We are absolutely thrilled to have Nancy Kerrigan join us as the keynote speaker for the Life Lessons Luncheon. While many of us have admired Nancy for her Olympic skating career, we look forward to her sharing her journey as an athlete, mother, and now executive producer of an upcoming documentary which addresses the connection between athletes and eating disorders, something Nancy has experienced personally as well.”
Sponsorships are currently available starting at $1,750. Individual tickets won’t go on sale until Wednesday, February 1.
* Photo provided by The Elisa Project
Thank you Jeanne, we appreciate so greatly your support! Rhonda