But then, of course, the coronavirus happened. In mid-March,
Queens announced it would move to virtual learning, the triathlon competition was postponed, and Dominicali spent time with her teammates and closest friends, mourning the end of college. A few days later after leaving Queens, Dominicali started to
feel sick and rundown with a fever—it was like the worst flu she’d ever had. She had COVID-19. By then, Dominicali’s mom had come to Charlotte
to return her to their hometown, Athens, Georgia, where Dominicali quarantined in the basement apartment of a family friend’s farmhouse. For a couple of weeks, she couldn’t do much more than
remain horizontal. She had such difficulty taking a full breath that she downloaded an app to her phone to help guide her through deep breathing exercises. And she could only walk halfway down her gravel driveway before becoming winded. “Tat kind of enhanced that panic trigger in me, because I’ve never been short of breath,” she said. Gradually Dominicali improved and began reconnecting with the outside world via social media. Tere she saw concerning images: Friends and other college-aged people gathering in large groups, not wearing face masks and shrugging their shoulders at COVID-19 because they were told it only affected elderly people or those with compromised immune systems. She was moved to speak out. “Take this seriously,” she wrote on Instagram on April 9.
“Despite my passion for taking care of myself through sport and nutrition, it took over two weeks for me to clear the symptoms of this virus, plus more time to regain best function of my lungs and was by far the sickest I have ever been.” Direct messages came in immediately. “I didn’t know somebody in our age group could get it,” one
read. “When I heard you had it, I knew I had to take this way more seriously,” wrote another. “Little did I know that [posting on Instagram] was by far the best decision I could have made at that time,” said Dominicali, who is back in Charlotte feeling just about back to normal physically and working as a pediatric nurse for Novant Health. She can finally do a full workout without taking a break, and feels confident that sharing her experience has made a difference. “Until it affects somebody that people really know in a
somewhat dramatic or very dramatic way, there’s not that much seriousness taken into account,” she said. “I think it really helps in situations like these when people are just fully transparent about their situation and not downplaying anything, especially a pandemic.”
R3C OFFERS A SAFE PLATFORM FOR SOCIAL CHANGE
As our nation reeled from the horrific acts of violence brought upon Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd this past year, Queens Athletics took action by founding the Royals Racial Reconciliation Coalition (R3C). Spearheaded by Cherie Swarthout, director of athletics; Bart Lundy, head men’s basketball coach; and Jen Brown, head women’s basketball coach, R3C condemns racism and bigotry in all of its forms, as it accepts the responsibility of pushing back against hate and racial prejudice. Part of R3C’s mission statement pledges to have
a zero-tolerance policy for all forms of racism and to fight the unconscious bias that leads to institutionalized racism. Lundy said that Queens’ coaching staff wanted to give athletes a safe platform that allows them to share their voices and create social change. “A lot of my players are Black, and everyday life,
what they have to go through in life, is not the same as my experience,” explained Lundy. “I think part of our role is to bring attention to that reality. It’s a moment in time where we can help other people understand.” Brown, who came to Queens from Virginia
Tech in May, says this is a time for everyone to unite as one. “We just want to make sure everyone feels comfortable, everyone feels included,” she said. “The goal [of R3C] is to raise awareness, to create a safe space for proper education and proper dialogue among all groups of people.” Part of R3C’s action plan includes encouraging and helping the university become a more diverse place to work and go to school, as well as creating community service programs that help close the educational gap for minority children in the greater Charlotte community. On August 28, Queens women’s basketball team
organized Royals Walk the Walk in collaboration with R3C. This virtual peaceful demonstration involved participants taking a picture or video of themselves walking or running eight minutes before posting it on social media with the tag #QueensWBB. More than 1,000 people participated. Later in the fall, R3C focused on voter registration and implicit bias education. “We do have inequality in our society,” said Lundy.
“How do we correct that? And how do we make it a better place? R3C is designed to provide opportunities for Royals to make a difference.”
—Lori K. Tate 7
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