Help me get to National Youth Championships!

Hi! I am Josie. I am an Olympic Weight Lifter, an artist, and I volunteer with an organization that helps to support Refugees. I am 16 and a Junior in high school. Growing up in North Africa, girls had little to no opportunity to try sports. My dad built this lifting rack for me within our courtyard wall, and in April of 2020, I found an online weightlifting class. The class, taught by Michaela Breeze (Commonwealth Games Gold, British Olympian 2004, 2008), was so inspiring I have taken her online classes ever since. Although she is based in England, Michaela continues to coach me online. In March, we moved to South Bend, where I train at Primal SB under Christopher Neubauer (owner of Primal SB).

I am raising money to compete in Las Vegas at the National Youth Championships, June 23-July 5. While I have been competing locally for a while, this is the next big step to reaching my weightlifting goals. My dream is to someday lift at the international level and coach other girls in weightlifting.

The funds raised will be used for airline tickets, the hotel stay, a rental car, and registration fees for the competition. Any extra funding will be donated to Neighbor to Neighbor to help local refugee families. For every donation $200 or more, I would like to send you a print of an original oil painting I did of a refugee woman as a thank you for supporting me!