Courtesy Killington Ski Resort
Female team leaders take part in National Girls and Women in Sports Day.
By Victoria Gaither
The women of Killington Ski Resort participated in National Girls and Women in Sports Day last Wednesday, Feb. 7. It was a day to celebrate the accomplishments of female athletes and recognize their influence in sports.
Kristel Killary, brand marketing and communications manager at Killington, said: “The goal is to get the amazing women working at Killington out for a casual get-together.”
Mother Nature delivered blue skies, sunshine, and terrific snow conditions, but for Sophia Clements, it was more than just the outdoors. It was bonding at its best. “It’s awesome to meet new women that I would have never met before ‘cause we are all in different departments,” she said.
Clements, food and beverage boutique supervisor at the Grand Hotel, continued: “It gives you the opportunity to do some networking, and be social and have fun outside of the office. So it proves we have fun while working at the ski resort.”
Clements shared time on the mountain with Halley Riley-Elliott, a snowboarder. Riley-Elliott is a vehicle maintenance manager at Killington and started her position at the mountain a year ago.
“This is my first time riding with Sophia. We know each other, but it’s our first being on the slopes,” she said.
This real-time meetup for the team leaders is what National Girls and Women in Sports Day is about: a chance to build relationships, learn, and make memories.
After skiing and riding for two hours, the group of about 15 women spent time together at the K-1 Lodge, sharing stories about their day on the mountain.
Over at Snowshed, another group of ladies who are ski and snowboard instructors shared lunch, laughs and lessons.
They spent the morning helping celebrate by giving women free ski and snowboarding lessons.
Leslie Guth, private lesson team lead, said: “The clinic is open to anybody at any level; all of us can teach beginners.”
It’s their way of giving back and encouraging women to come out and build confidence.
Rosemary Czaeor, a ski instructor at Killington for 30 years, attended the event to support the cause and said, “It’s good to have these women’s programs that encourage women to come back out and participate and have the camaraderie.”
Camaraderie was a word used by many that day because, as Colleen Burritt, team lead for adult snowboard school, said: “It’s good to get women all together to go out and ride and to reach out to other women in the community. It gives the women a chance for camaraderie, just riding and having fun.”
Guth, who has been at Killington for over 40 years, has seen changes with more women in management and ski technology changes, but one thing that never changes is her love for the mountain. “There is nothing like standing on top of Superstar on a day like today with trees covered crystally, or just standing on top of Snowshed even with people around you; you are still in your own world,” she said.
