Meet SheBelieves Hero Hollis Belger and Learn About the SheBelieves Internship
When Hollis Belger was nine years old, she founded the Juggling for Jude initiative to raise money for children with cancer. Her incredible fundraising efforts turned into a $200,000 campaign. At age thirteen, Hollis was named 2018 SheBelieves Hero by U.S. Soccer and the U.S. Women’s National Team. This allowed her to attend a USWNT match and training session, and interact with other inspiring women athletes. Hollis shared her experience with Smart Girls.
Smart Girls: What does it mean to be a SheBelieves Hero?
Hollis: Being the SheBelieves Hero means that you are someone who doesn’t give up. You strive for your goals and won’t stop working to achieve them if something difficult comes your way. You have a goal that benefits others in some way. Your goal isn’t just for you, it’s for a good cause and one that drives you. You are passionate and motivated and always try to be a good role model. You come across challenges but never let them slow you down.
You are always trying to think about other people less fortunate than you and know that you are in a position to inspire others to do the same. You know that there is a lot of power in your passions and talents, and you are committed to using your power to help others. Being the SheBelieves Hero comes with a lot of responsibility, and you are honored to take that on and represent other strong and caring girls around the world who are also doing great things.
Can you tell us about the fundraising work you’re doing for St. Jude?
Basically, I juggle my soccer ball in exchange for donations to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, where kids with cancer are treated free of charge and don’t have to pay for food, housing, or travel. Also, doctors and scientists are working hard every day and are on the leading edge of research to find a cure for pediatric cancer and other diseases.
When I first started Juggling for Jude, it was going to be a summer project. I juggled almost every day of that first summer, and my mom posted videos of me juggling on her social media. People were really impressed, because I was so little and was really good at juggling. My mom told me that if I worked hard to get better at juggling and if I did it every day, people would donate money to help kids with cancer. I wasn’t sure how it would work, but I wanted to help kids who were sick, so I did it. That first summer, I raised more than $34,000, which was amazing and I’m so thankful for all of those donors.
From there, I added in special events like juggling in parades, at malls, in charity golf tournaments, and at a Major League Soccer game! I also started speaking about Juggling for Jude and helping spread the word about St. Jude. When I speak to kids at schools, I talk about how we can all choose a passion and turn it into a way to give back. I’ve also gotten to speak at some pretty amazing events with adults and even got to speak to more than 1,100 adults at a leadership conference for a huge corporation that gives millions of dollars to St. Jude! It was incredible and made me want to do as much public speaking as I can.
At this point my fundraiser really combines juggling and speaking and doing as much outreach as I can to get people to know about St. Jude and to want to donate. Interviews like this are a great way for me to do that, so I’m really thankful for the opportunity. Sometimes all it takes is for someone to hear my story and get inspired to donate. I once got $30,000 from a chain of gyms who heard my story and decided to include me and St. Jude in their annual cancer fundraiser!
Setting up a fundraiser for anything sounds daunting. How did you achieve it?
Since I was so young, my mom helped me with the actual set up of my website and helped spread the word that I was juggling to raise money for St. Jude. Of course I couldn’t have done this without her help. But I had to do the work.
It was difficult going out and juggling almost every day of the summer when I was only nine years old. I was often tired from various summer camps I was doing, and I also really wanted to hang out with my friends and do other things. Sometimes I felt like I had a lot of pressure on me to get high numbers. But the thing that kept me going in juggling was the thought of how many other nine year olds were getting treated for cancer. I didn’t exactly know how bad cancer was at the time, but I knew that they were not able to do the things I was doing, and that made me sad, but it also made me determined to get higher numbers and raise more money. Higher numbers got attention and donations, so it mattered.
How did you get into soccer juggling? That seems pretty niche!
I joined a competitive soccer team when I was 8 years old. Right off the bat, my mom and I knew that I was a very technical player. I played midfield, which involves a lot of skill and coordination. My coach told me and my teammates that juggling was a great way to develop soccer skills. He also said that starting at a young age would get us ahead. I have two parents who have soccer backgrounds (especially my mom), and we all went out to the field near my house and they taught me how to juggle. We decided that I would have to only use my feet, because using thighs made it a lot easier. Also, I had to alternate left and right feet, because it’s important to be able to use both feet in soccer. I soon became obsessed with the idea of getting higher numbers. I wanted to be the best juggler on my team and of course wanted to beat my mom’s record too :)! I had a knack for staying committed to juggling and I would juggle literally every chance I got.
When it turned into a way to help kids with cancer, there was no turning back, and I’ve been juggling ever since. I don’t actually have perfect form all the time, especially when I’m tired. The dancer in me wants to have straight legs so the ball sometimes goes higher than it should. But I can still juggle for what feels like forever without dropping the ball, and my focus is on donations for kids with cancer, not becoming the best soccer juggler in the world.
What goals are you currently striving for in 2018?
As far as Juggling for Jude, I have three main goals for 2018:
I really want to get a sponsor for Juggling for Jude. I would love to work with a company that wants to support my mission. I think a soccer brand would be a perfect fit, but really it could be any company that wants to support a girl using sport to make a real difference for kids with cancer. I have so many ideas about how a company could get involved and help me raise A LOT more money, so I really hope this will happen in 2018!
Another goal is to reach at least $300,000 for St. Jude. Right now, I’m at $210,800. It’s a huge goal and it might be hard, but that’s the point. I want it to be hard for me. I want to have big goals. if it was easy, then I wouldn’t be where I am today.
I also want to have more speaking and publicity opportunities for Juggling for Jude. Juggling doesn’t do all the work. I love speaking to huge crowds about my experiences and inspiring them to donate, face to face instead of from computer to computer. I hope to get more opportunities that allow me to spread the word about Juggling for Jude and St. Jude and about how kids can give back and make a difference. And of course I would love to beat my juggling record (2,071 alternating and feet only) and hopefully get close to 3,000 consecutive juggles!
Here is Alejandra Magana, Corporate Partnership Coordinator, to discuss the SheBelieves Internship.
Smart Girls: What organizations will participants be exposed to in the internship?
Alejandra: Currently we have Continental Tire, CSM/Hisense, NWSL Media, Northwestern Medicine, & U.S. Soccer.
Is the internship specifically designed for those interested in pursuing a sporting career?
Not all of the internships within the program are specific to pursuing a sporting career. Some of these are specific to the industry of the company hiring these interns (i.e. automotive/engineering). We wanted to show that these are companies who work with U.S. Soccer in different ways and that working in sports can look differently than what you normally think of. The bigger focus was getting different opportunities in front of young women who typically may not think to look for these types of positions.
What is the SheBelieves spirit?
The SheBelieves Spirit refers to someone who is a leader in their community, a confident and passionate individual who empowers others around them and is working to make a difference. They are looking to make a lasting impact on those around them.
