With so much tragedy and uncertainty going on in the media- from the China & Greece stock market crash to the continued violence on the streets (in Chicago)– we sometimes forget to celebrate greatness.  Well, I’d like to celebrate a young lady who is not “famous” but whom, through hard work and dedicated parents, was able to raise the bar for herself–securing a chance to compete at the National Track Meet in Jacksonville, Florida.

Daysha Tillman is a 16-year-old track star at Shepard High School in Palos Heights, IL.  She is an Olympic-grade athlete with dreams of competing there one day.  The purpose of this article is to help her and her family raise money to cover the cost of her travel, expenses, and equipment–allowing her to participate at Nationals the week of July 27th.

Her parents, Sam and Keshania Tillman, have raised their 3 girls and 1 son with honor and integrity and in spite of the financial strain, they have made sure that their kids studied hard in school and competed in the sports of their choices.  All 3 of the girls have participated in sports- softball, basketball, and track–giving their absolute best.  The youngest daughter, Daysha, has her eyes set on the Olympics and has trained hard to progress in her sport.

Daysha has qualified to go to Nationals—she was all conference winner with 4 FIRST PLACE medals as well as placing strong in down state track meets.  This young lady is a highly intelligent, hard-working, and gifted athlete. I believe that she has more than earned this opportunity to be able to go and compete without worrying about how her parents will pay for it. It is my honor to be able to help them raise the funds.

Our children are not born to fail.  They have the ability to achieve greatness and all that is required of us–both parents and the community–is to fan the fire that is already underneath their feet.  Daysha Tillman’s feet are meant to fly.  We just need to give her a nudge.

To support Daysha’s efforts please go here