Christy Lynn Stewart is 10 years old and will be going into 6th grade (she will be leaving the elementary school where I teach and going to middle school.

It will be the first time in ten years I will not have one of my own children with me in school and I am getting very melancholy about  that situation).  We live in Southern Pines, North Carolina and Christy has been associated with this gym, Sandhills Academy of Gymnastics in Aberdeen, North Carolina since she was 4 years old.  Orginally she just  went for tumbling classes and then as she became older and watched the older girls she realized that gymnastics was what she wanted to do.

I  encouraged her to take ballet/dance for I thought it would help her develop the poise that she would need for future floor routines.  She  took dance for 1 year but would not continue with it.  I think she is realizing now that if she had stuck with it it would have helped her with her floor routine finesse.  That is always her lowest score and hurts her all around.  With time though being as motivated as Christy is she will work hard to improve on that.  In her last meet of the season, the state finals, in her division she placed 9th on floor with a 7.75, fifth on uneven bars (her favorite event) with an 8.6, seventh place on balance beam with an 8.2 , and an 8.5 on vault.  She earned a seventh in the all-around.

She goes to the gym 3 days a week-Monday 5:00-8:30, Thursday 5:00-8:30 and Fridays 3:30-6:30.  She is currently a Level 5 and is working to achieve the skills and necessary scores to become a Level 6.At the recent Sandstar(that is the name of her team THE SANDSTARS) 2000 Awards Banquet Christy was honored by her team by being given the Most Spirited Award.  She is the one that they can always count on to encourage them and support them at their competitive meets.

No matter how she is doing she always cheers them on.  I was very proud of her for getting that award for it says alot about her true sportmanship nature.  She will be in the gym 4 days a week during the summer and attend 2 gymnastics camps in North Carolina.