YOU GOT IT GIRL SCHOLARSHIP

My name is Lily Sanford and I am proud to be a “You Got It Girl”. I am a current sophomore at James Madison University and I am on the D1A National Award Winning Dukettes Dance Team. I have danced ever since I was 7 and I am a huge advocate for how dance is a sport and that every dancer deserves recognition. Dance takes immense athleticism and discipline, and it has made me who I am today. I have received numerous awards, recognitions, and scholarships over the past 12 years, but by far the biggest accomplishment during my athletic career was making my collegiate dance team. I looked up to the JMU Dukettes Dance Team for years and being able to join the family and represent my university at games, travel and community events, and at the national level means so much to me. The values YGIG promotes align greatly with me as I think resilience and the ability to overcome obstacles is so important to all female athletes. I, myself, had a set back that impacted not only my love for my sport but also my whole world. In 2021 I lost my Dad, and for 15 year old me this was more than heart breaking. My Dad was my best friend and losing him felt so isolating. I began losing interest in things I once loved, primarily dance. Dance was once my escape from reality and after the passing of my Dad I still felt hurt even when dancing. But I began to realize that I was not alone. So many other girls were going through hardship just like me and we didn't deserve to give up on our dreams. I started volunteering with the American Foundation of Suicide Prevention to get out in my community and help others dealing with the loses of loved ones, and helping them made me realize I needed to keep going in the same way I encouraged them to. I kept training and flourished as an athlete. I put in even more hours and bettered myself every day. I embraced the emotions and channeled them through my dancing, telling stories on stage that resonated with the audience and because of that I was able to raise awareness through my artform as well as my volunteer work. My favorite and most recent advocacy was wearing Suicide Prevention Ribbons with my team on the field at a James Madison University home football game. My teammates and coach are my biggest supporters and I am so grateful they believe in me and my cause. I posted on social media about our ribbons and received an overwhelming amount of messages saying my work breaking down the stigma surrounding mental health helped them to seek help and start conversations. Dance is such a heartfelt and powerful art form and sport and I hope to continue showing all dancers we can truly accomplish anything through our movement and our voices. Throughout my dance career someone I have looked up to is my mom. My mom has always invested in my dance and educational career. After losing my dad we have struggled financially but she has never let it get in the way of my dreams. She has taught me the value of hard work and how to stand up for what I believe in. From driving me to dance practices for years, being my shoulder to cry on, never missing a performance, motivating me to be my best, and every moment in between I would not be where I am today as an athlete or as a person without her. I truly love the YGIG program and everything it stands for, and receiving this scholarship would help me immensely. As I mentioned, after the loss of my dad paying for college has been very hard for myself and my family to manage. The scholarship would be put towards paying my tuition and keeping me here at James Madison University and allow me to continue my time on the Dukettes Dance Team. Receiving an education while pursuing my love for my sport is by far the greatest blessing. I am working towards getting a Bachelors degree in psychology. I plan on pursuing a career where I can help others understand their mental health and potentially being a therapist to children navigating obstacles the same way I did at a young age. I also know dance will forever be in my life so I hope to continue educating young dancers and share my love of dance with them. I will forever be proud to consider myself a YGIG and hope every dancer knows we are all athletes and have so much potential to make a mark on the world through our sport. Thank you for your time and consideration!