Fitzgerald
Elementary
School's
girls'
basketball
club
recently
welcomed
Olympic
Gold
Medalist
Benita
Fitzgerald-Mosley.
The
Olympian
talked
with
students
about
setting
goals.
Fitzgerald-Mosley
showed
students
her
gold
medal
and
shared
her
story
about
winning
it
in
the
100-meter
hurdles
event
at
the
1984
Summer
Olympics
hosted
in
Los
Angeles.
The
win
made
history
as
she
became
the
first
African
American
woman
to
win
a
gold
medal
in
this
event.
She
was
not
favored
to
win
the
top
spot,
but
as
she
explained
in
her
presentation
to
students,
"you
can
accomplish
anything
you
put
your
mind
to,
and
if
you
work
hard,
you
can
do
it."
She
told
students
to
"conceive
it,
believe
it,
and
achieve
it."
Fitzgerald-Mosley
is
a
native
of
Prince
William
County.
She
graduated
from
Gar-Field
High
School
and
Fitzgerald
Elementary
is
named
for
her
mother,
Fannie
Fitzgerald.
Principal
George
Wright
said
he
is
excited
to
see
the
girls'
basketball
club
engaging
with
motivational
role
models.
He
added
his
pride
in
the
fact
an
office
assistant,
Nikki
Moore,
stepped
up
to
co-sponsor
the
club.
"It's
important
that
students
connect
with
as
many
people
as
possible.
Learning
takes
place
in
many
forms
and
with
a
variety
of
people.
The
support
staff
at
Fitzgerald
is
invested
in
the
well-being
of
students.
It's
important
that
they
are
given
the
opportunity
to
demonstrate
their
support
for
kids.
At
the
end
of
the
day,
it
increases
the
positive
outcome
for
kids
and
adds
to
the
learning
experience.
Every
role
in
public
education
is
valuable
and
this
shows
that,"
Wright
explained.
Moore
hosts
the
club
with
Elizabeth
Jones,
the
physical
education
teacher.
Moore
coordinated
Benita
Fitzgerald-Mosley's
visit
with
help
from
Kim
(Fitzgerald)
Lennon,
who
is
not
only
a
kindergarten
teacher
at
Fitzgerald,
but
also
Benita's
sister.
"I
want
the
girls
to
believe
in
themselves.
If
they
see
others
who
have
accomplished
great
things
it
will
motivate
them
to
do
the
same,
and
not
give
up
on
their
hopes
and
dreams.
I
believe
when
you
are
a
leader
you
can
inspire
others,"
Moore
shared.
Students
also
received
inspiration
from
the
Washington
Mystics
Women's
National
Basketball
Association
(WNBA)
team.
The
team
sent
gifts
that
included
shirts,
pencils,
and
autographed
photos
of
the
players.
The
club
is
open
to
fourth
and
fifth
graders.
Not
only
are
the
club
members
being
taught
how
to
play
basketball,
they
are
also
learning
about
teamwork
and
leadership
skills.
Moore
is
also
a
former
PWCS
student.
She
played
basketball
at
the
former
Brentsville
Middle
School
and
at
Unity
Reed
High
School.
