Brave Enough To Be Bliss

I felt such shame back then, I’m not sure if I actually thanked Coach Washington for all of her support, but if I didn’t, I hope she will run across this message.

Dear Coach,

I have nothing but tremendous respect for you and all you accomplished throughout your career. But even more, I respect the kind, encouraging and caring human you were to me and everyone else I saw you interact with, whether they deserved it or not. You exemplify being The One, which will make sense when you see the quote on the final page of this book. It was an honor to serve you and your teams, and you made me feel like a real part of the women’s basketball family. You were quiet and I was quiet, so we didn’t have all the conversations I so wish we had. Today if I were with you, I would have so many questions and I have a feeling you would wish I was still quiet. But guaranteed, we’d have a lot more laughs. I was so young and naïve at that time; I don’t t hink I had a complete grasp of just how significant your contributions were to KU and every life you touched. I knew you made a big impact, but now I see more clearly just how truly huge it was. And personally, I can never thank you enough for knowing my heart, even if I was too scared to share it much back then. And for having my back in such a big way by saving my job. Honestly, I’m not sure the person I was back then could have survived it if you hadn’t.

With lots of overdue appreciation, love, and big hugs, Ginger

While I may not have handled the situation as a model employee, I did as a model human being.

“Never be afraid to raise your voice for honesty and truth and compassion, against injustice and lying and greed.” William Faulkner

Resources ▪ Letter from Birmingham Jail, by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (letterfromjail.com) ▪ What is Title IX? - Women's Sports Foundation (womenssportsfoundation.org) ▪ How Title IX changed college sports for women over the past 50 years (usatoday.com) ▪ Title IX 50th anniversary: How one law changed women’s sports forever - Sports Illustrated ▪ ABOUT | David Goggins

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