Susie Kemp, right, and Sherry Kemp.
By Jennifer Coco
As Charlene Kemp-Queener competed in the javelin and shot put at the 2019 National Senior Games in Albuquerque, her mother Susie Kemp and sister Sherry Kemp sat cheering on the sidelines. Sherry recounts turning to Susie after watching then 103-year-old Julia “Hurricane” Hawkins run the 50-meter race and saying, “You know mom, we can do something.”
At that moment Sherry and Susie committed to competing in the next National Senior Games, despite the fact that both relied on walkers at the time, and Sherry was on oxygen due to a chronic lung disease that left her with 24% lung capacity..
Spoiler alert: They reached their goal, and then some, through hard work and dedication to fitness.
All three women are now competing as athletes in the 2022 National Senior Games presented by Humana. Their family sport is Cornhole, and Charlene kept her Javelin and Shot Put competitions. Sherry chose to compete in the 1500M Power Walk and beat her personal best time by two minutes. The most amazing part? She is now off of oxygen and no longer needs a walker!
“I’m pretty proud of myself, I worked hard,” Sherry shares. “I just had back surgery last June – not even a year ago.”
You don’t have to look far for another example of strength and overcoming obstacles. Susie is a Korean War veteran who has battled stomach cancer and COVID-19. We know there are many stories to be told in this family, stay tuned for a full feature after The Games!
Introduction of Cornhole Attracts NSGA Staffers
Ed Roberts competes in Cornhole at the 2022 National Senior Games presented by Humana.
The new open sport of Cornhole is making its debut, and two Games staffers decided to jump into the fray.
Ed Roberts of Fort Worth has been helping the Texas Senior Games with their results processing since his late wife Kay started doing it in 1995 and put the lasso on him to join in. Ed has been handling results quality control at the National Senior Games since 2005, and in 2019 he found time to play shuffleboard to enjoy the Games experience.
Becky Sewell is NSGA’s fulltime Vice President of Athlete Relations, and despite the age difference Ed agreed to “play down” from his 85-89 level to Becky’s 50-54 age group. “We had zero expectations,” Becky laughs, but as luck would have it, they were the only 50-54 team and played in a larger pool of 55-59. That means both have gold medals around their necks now and had a throng of other staff members on hand to congratulate them.
We knew what question to ask Ed Roberts, a true Texan to the bone: Was winning a gold medal as good as getting some slow cooked Texas BBQ brisket? His answer was immediate.
Becky Sewell, NSGA Vice President of Athlete Relations.
“No!”
He then adds, “But it was a lot of fun and Becky was a great partner.”
Becky becomes the second fulltime NSGA staffer to actually compete in the National Senior Games, following Media Director Del Moon who started Power Walking in 2019. “It’s fun to feel like I’m a little more connected to the athletes,” she says. “Maybe we’ll do it again!”
