Hello, my name is Courtney. I grew up in Washington State where I worked for the state of Washington for 12 years in direct care for people with intellectual disabilities. I am a wife and a mom to 2 amazing kids who keep me busy and always on my toes! In October 2019, I decided to quit my job and become a full-time student and a stay-at-home mom. I began going to SNHU to work on getting my bachelor's degree in sociology with a minor in psychology because I love helping people and enjoy learning how to understand and empathize with others. In October 2020, my husband and I decided to relocate our family to South Dakota in hopes to find a calmer way of life. It has been an amazing thing for our family and we are so thankful we chose Yankton to be our home. I was always the skinny girl growing up and loved doing sports and being active, but always suffered from self-confidence and thought I had to mask myself with makeup and fancy clothes to look and feel good. When I started packing on the pounds, my mental health took an all-time low and I knew I needed to find something for me to get active and meet new people. In January of 2021, I found myself at a very low point, where I felt something was missing my mental health was at an all-time low and I was so unhappy with how I felt and looked. Then I found Empower and decided to give it a shot. From my first class, I felt welcomed and felt like I had found a place where I fit in and could be my true self. I instantly signed up for a membership and never looked back. Fast forward, I am now the General Manager at Empower and it has been such a positive part of my life being surrounded by amazing women who lift each other up and can make you laugh and push you to do a little more each time you come in. I have grown so much mentally and have slowly learned to love myself again. I am physically in the best shape I have been in since probably high school. I am on track to graduate from SNHU in April of 2023, and I hope to use that degree to continue to help motivate people to be their true selves and find a way to push through their limits and learn to love their true authentic selves. I can't even begin to describe how much Empower and the ladies who come here have helped me and I am forever thankful that my journey has led me here.
