learning that occurs in between program breaks, when we sit them down and talk directly to them, is about the importance of having a wellness outlook and practicing healthy ways of liv- ing; realizing one’s significance and purpose; and, looking be- yond the fear and perceived hopelessness of the circum- stances within which these young people exist.


ASM: You are so passionate about the whole concept of using sports as a conduit for change. I know you used to be an ath- lete as well. What gives you your drive about this mission?


Kasia: You know, at the highest level only God can give you that drive on a day to day basis, particularly when there is not a ton of support from elsewhere. My personal belief is that God instills different passions in people. What we do with those passions determines whether and how we will walk into our calling. All this has played out in the way God has scripted and continues to script my life’s story – with sports being a large part of it. Its a long story, but as many know I had a brush with the polio epidemic as an infant, which you would never know by just looking at me. My parents were medical practitioners, so this was not a case of ignorance but rather something outside of their control. As they explained to me years later, I did not re- ceive any vaccinations before the age of seven because vacci- nations were either not available or were very hard to come by during that time in Africa (early 1970s) due to the lack of ade- quate infrastructure, transportation and proper storage even after being imported. The environment I was born into lacked steady electricity, adequate refrigeration, and saw excessive heat on a daily basis – so the risk of danger was very real for anyone who took the chance of administering contaminated


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