Support Shannon's Journey to Emerald Cup

Hello!

I am Shannon, a dedicated athlete, yoga teacher and circus artist and I'm asking for your help to make it to my final body building competition of the season - the Emerald Cup Natural Show on May 4th in Bellevue. I will be competing in Wellness Division.

Last year I had to step back from this dream due to finances. This year the journey continues, and although my situation is better, I could still use some help. I have been trying to keep up with finances and it has been difficult due to all the life expenses that are making it feel almost impossible to achieve this dream. Especially while I am in the process of moving, finding an official place to live and looking for full time work.

Why donations would help me you ask?

Finding and persuing the discipline of this sport has meant a lot to me and my mental health. I am a creature of structure and positive habit. I decided to really get serious about physique sport and do competitions in 2023 while I was living in Sandpoint, ID. I joined a gym, hired a coach, bought lots of protein and the rest was history. What I found was that the daily training and regimen was absolutely amazing for my own structure. Even in moments that felt hard, I still had the commitment of training to fall back to always. Competing in my home city means a lot to me. I will be able to see family, friends, collect the rest of my belongings to fully move to San Francisco and even show up for a special art project that was accepted at Seattle Erotic Arts Festival (I'll be representing and signing a collaborative body painted Ghosh Yoga Portrait series of the 84 lineage available for sale at the SEAF gift shot friday eve 5/2 with body painter & photographer, Curtis Light)

Specifically what what i will do with your donations:

1. Flight to Seattle

2. Uber transportation or gas $ for me to give a friend to pick me up

3. Hotel room or airbnb. (Thank you everyone who has offered to host me, but I actually really need my own private space in order to focus better).

4. Spray Tan

5. Gel X Nail touch ups (I know..)

6. Celebration Dinner

7. Honestly, FOOD to help me stay on proper nutrition for this leading up

8. A Gym membership to keep training

9. Any last minute makeup

10. Body work

If I were to get all of the above with your donations, any extra would go to this:

-Professional Hair & Makeup

-Professional Photos & Videos

The kind of compromises I would no longer have to make if I had the funding to do this the way I want are:

-Not going into credit card debt (last year I maxed out my credit card and it took me a little bit to pay it back in full.)

-Buying canned vegetables and low quality meat & protein powders

-holding off on getting the electrical in my car fixed

-Staying at planet fitness (its cheap, but its so full I can barely ever get a squat rack or on the leg press machine to help build my leg for Wellness)

-Not going to the doctors and getting blood work

I want to make this fun, so the first 4 people to donate will receive their choice of the follow:

1. Fitness Program that fits YOUR personal lifestyle

2.Nutritional Planning that fits YOUR personal lifestyle

or

3.Basic Wellness Coaching - Social Services for your basic needs and navigation through life (ie. Getting a license, navigating health insurance, booking needed appointments, housing, job hunting, food sourcing & hygene/esthetics)

I'd also like to put 10% of these proceeds towards Seattle Flow Art Collective, which is one of the non profit organizations that have personally uplifted me in the Seattle area over the past decade. Even though I have relocated to Cali, I still feel deeply a part of this community. They foster community, integrity and awareness to bring flow arts and good times to as many people in the area as they can.

Thank you for taking the time to read and consider donating <3