Beacon News
A PLACE OF HOPE
2019 PERSEVERANCE AWARD WINNER KAYLYNN BUSH REFLECTS ON A DIFFICULT JOURNEY WITH A REWARDING END. Women's Basketball student-athlete Kaylynn Bush '19 developed a strong reputation in just two years at Northwest Christian University as a great student, a great friend, and a force to be reckoned with on the court. Head Coach Chad Meadors said the first thing that comes to mind when he thinks of Kaylynn is her grit and her toughness. "She really enjoys doing the difficult things on the court, taking charges and playing lights-out defense," he said.
adversity to play all 30 games as a freshman, but it took its toll. A new coach came in for her sophomore season and she convinced herself to give it another shot. Kaylynn continued to battle through sickness, and struggled to keep her head in the game. She said, "The new coach didn't know me and my history and she told me she didn't trust me or believe in me. I began to question why I would play for a school that didn't believe in me and support me."
There was a time when that tough exterior did not match how Kaylynn was feeling on the inside.
Kaylynn was now playing off the bench, feeling defeated and her mental health went from bad to worse. She said, "I was constantly sick, I was losing weight and being away from family was so hard. I felt like my mind was going to explode and I was trapped. I would cry, pull out my hair and make myself throw up. It wasn't going to get better and there was nobody who was going to help me make it better. I questioned whether my existence on the planet was worth it. Clearly there was no meaning and my life wasn't going to get better."
Coming out of high school at Valley Christian High School in Portland, Kaylynn was a highly touted basketball player. Recruited by multiple schools, including NCU and former coach Heath Alexander, she landed at an NCAA Division II school in Colorado with a plan to play basketball and get a degree in environmental business. She said, "I went there planning to make an impact in the classroom and on the court. I thought this was a school that would give me the opportunity to succeed. I didn't know what to expect, but I had always been taught to avoid distractions and work hard to make friends and have the time of your life, but first and foremost to get your degree. Never once did I learn that things would be so hard." Things quickly took a turn when she stepped on campus. Adjusting to the life of a driven student-athlete began to feel overwhelming and she was stretching herself too thin. "Finding the balance between getting it done in the classroom and then being in the gym all day every day was very hard," she said. "I was over doing it and I ended up
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Spring 2019 | The Beacon
in the hospital with an abscess in the back of my throat. I was in the hospital for five days and not once did my coach come to see me." Upon her return, her coach told her to get back on the court as quickly as possible and to get ready for the upcoming season. She said, "He basically told me he didn't care that I was practically on my death bed, he just needed me to be in practice so our team could be successful." At 17, Kaylynn struggled to know what to do. She was supposed to be on bed rest for a month, but was instructed to be at practice, running or riding a bike when should couldn't get on the court. The side effects of her medications made these tasks difficult and she was feeling singled out. "Of course, I don't have mom and dad there to fight my battles for me so I had to do it on my own," she said. Miraculously, Kaylynn fought through
Finally making her way to a counselor at the encouragement of her teammates, Kaylynn was diagnosed with depression and anxiety and put on medication. She made the decision to transfer and knew she wanted to come home. "I needed to be closer to my family," she said, "and even though Eugene was two hours away, it still felt like home." Kaylynn called up Coach Alexander to see if he might still have a spot for her on the team and he enthusiastically said yes. "Coming to NCU was a great opportunity for me and I am forever grateful that Coach Alexander still believed in me and in my talents," she said. "It was such a blessing because I thought my dream might have been over."
