“Mini Aaliyah” discovers inspiration from Aaliyah

[BRS24]

Gosh, Geno recruits really good people. I enjoy these stories more than the basketball.

'Mini Aaliyah': How UConn women's basketball star Aaliyah Edwards inspired this 8-year-old

UConn football analyst Mickey Grace's daughter wears purple and gold braids in honor of Huskies women's basketball star Aaliyah Edwards.

www.ctinsider.com

Aaliyah Edwards is an All-American forward. A star for both UConn women’s basketball and Team Canada. A fierce competitor who’s force under the hoop demands a presence through her strong physicality and determination. Yet, none of that matters to Aria Grace.​

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Aria, 8, sees Edwards as so much more. She’s a role model, a big sister, a friend and, most importantly, a glimpse of what she too can become.​

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While Edwards’ hair caught Aria’s attention first, underneath the purple and gold was a strong Black female presence that Aria gravitated toward. While Mickey didn’t know Edwards personally back then, players on the football team reassured her that Edwards was a mature, kind and respectful player for Aria to look up to.​

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“The fact that all the players very much approved of her admiration for Aaliyah, I was like ‘OK, this is a good person,’” Mickey said.​

 

[Geew1992]

 

[R2Dee2]

Thanks for sharing this article! I love reading stories like this and Ari couldn’t have picked a better role model. I’ve met Aaliyah once at an event in Toronto and she was so sweet and gracious to everyone who approached her.