September 27, 2024 • 21 mins
In this episode, Dr. Brooke Mailhiot is honored to have Laila Little, also known as the “Double Dutch Queen.” With over 25 years of international recognition in the sport of Double Dutch, Laila has touched lives worldwide with her passion and dedication. Through her work in Double Dutch, Laila has impacted over 15,000 youth globally. This experience inspired her to establish Jump Kids Health, a mental health group that focuses on treating children physically, emotionally, and mentally while addressing key issues like Adverse Childhood Experiences and Childhood Obesity.
Born and raised in Newark, NJ, Laila understands firsthand the devastating impact that poverty, crime, and lack of support can have on youth. Join us as we dive deep into her journey, mission, and the incredible impact she's making on children worldwide. You won't want to miss this!
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (00:00):
Welcome to Rowan College of Burlington
County's Baroness Podcast. I'mDr Brooke Mailhiot, program
chair and assistant professor ofour entertainment technologies
department. I am the co chair ofthe Women's Advocacy Group, a
subcommittee of the President'sAdvisory Council on diversity,
equity and inclusion. Thismonthly series highlights women
in leadership while encouraginglisteners to build their skills,
(00:22):
connect with the community andvisualize the opportunities
available to women in variousprofessions, tune in here for a
female perspective on theBurlington County community. We
are here to listen to theseamazing women, and if you want
to hear from women who lead andinspire, this podcast is for you
in September. Boy, are we readyfor some inspiration to
(00:46):
jumpstart this semester? Icertainly am. We are in need of
a little motivation andinspiration, and today, I am
honored to have Laila Little akadouble dutch queen, yes, yes,
internationally known in thesport of double dutch for over
25 years, and recognized allover the world for her many
accomplishments. You may havewatched her show jump that aired
(01:09):
on Lifetime network in 2016 butnot just on Lifetime. What about
spots on Good Morning America,Dr Oz picks 11 news and Ben Aron
Mrs. Little was invited to theWhite House during the Obama
administration, and she hasranked the 17th most influential
coaches by coach seek and touchthe lives of over 15,000 youth
(01:31):
around the globe. Seeing theimpact on double dutch that she
has created, she has inspired usto establish jump kids health, a
platform to clinically treatchildren physically, emotionally
and mentally jump. Kids healthis a mental health group that
focuses on adverse childexperiences and child obesity.
(01:51):
Thank you for joining us today.
Unknown (01:53):
Wow. Thanks for having me almost. Who is she talking
about? I
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (01:56):
am talking about you. What are you talking
about? I am talking about you. I
Unknown (02:00):
mean, sound amazing.
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (02:02):
It sounds amazing. I had to cut like, half
of it out because you have justdone everything and anything
like, really, I don't know howyou fit time in the day, but you
are just, you're a powerhouse.It's unbelievable. So what I
want to do is just tell us, youknow, double dutch, and then you
(02:23):
morphed it into this such aunique like, method of just
communication and inspirationand motivation for women. Just
like, how did that come about?
Unknown (02:38):
Um, you know, I started this whole journey at the young
age of eight. Not going to tellmy age, but it's been over 30
years I've been doing this, andit kind of just like you said,
it just blossomed into this bigthing. I started out just I
wanted to start my own team, andit became a training facility,
it became a business, and Iliterally had to learn how to
(03:00):
run a business while doing it.So, like you said, when I hear
these things that I've done on alist, I'm like, wow, that's a
lot. Like, I didn't even knowworking every day and making
sure that marginalizedcommunities, girls and
marginalized communities, getthese opportunities and access
to these spaces. I don't evenrealize that. Yeah, I've done
(03:22):
that. I've done Dr Oz, I've doneGood Morning America. I've done,
you know, the White House metthe president. Well,
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (03:29):
I'm honored to have you sit across from me
because, like, I'm not worthy.This is crazy. And
Unknown (03:34):
again, look where I am at a university, I
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (03:38):
know, right? It is crazy. So double
dutch, for those of ourlisteners who don't know what
double dutch is like, how didyou get involved in Double
Dutch? Like, you know, that'snot kind of the social norm
extracurricular activity we allthink about getting involved in.
Unknown (03:57):
You know, what's crazy is, I always say, How did I been
for my mom? I wouldn't be inDouble Dutch. She was a single
parent. She was in school fulltime and working school full
time, and so she would alwayspick me up from school late. I
would be the only one there withthe security guard in my
elementary school. So I saw awhole bunch of friends walking
around the corner. I'm like,where are you guys going every
(04:17):
day? Yeah, like, we go to theBoys and Girls Club. It was
literally around the corner frommy school, okay? And so I said,
Well, I'll go too. Yeah. It waslike, God sent because when I
got there, I already had amembership, because I was a part
of this college ready program,okay? So we automatically got a
free membership. And so I wasaccepted in. And then my friends
told me that, hey, they got adouble edged team over there.
(04:40):
And I was like, I should tryout. They're like, Yeah, we
should all try out. So we alltried out, and we made it, and
we became the first New Jerseyteam to make it into the finals
and win World Championship,amazing, multiple times. So
you're
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (04:54):
so add to your bio world champion. Oh,
multiple worlds. Everything.Everything cool. Coach, multiple
World Champion coach, and all ofand I know we were just talking
about that, you just were at theOlympics. Tell me about that.
So, world champion to theOlympics. I mean, who can say,
like, that is the end all be,all of the sport, right? I mean,
(05:15):
let's
Unknown (05:15):
talk about that. Yeah, that is the global stage. And
yeah, I've been honored andprivileged to have that
experience. And not only justabout me, but I brought nine
ambassadors from Chicago,Newark, New Jersey, Atlanta to
Paris with me. And so the youthgot an opportunity to jump on
the global stage. And I alwayssay, regardless of whether it
becomes an official sport, theystill jumped on the global stage
(05:39):
at the Olympics, doing somethingthat they love. And so, yeah, I
brought this whole experiencedown here to Mount Holly,
Burlington County area. Istarted to jump kids in Mount
Holly, and I want to bring thoseexperiences to these youth in
Burlington County.
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (05:52):
So it was, you know, like you're saying,
you're taking this global stage,you're bringing it local. You're
talking you're right here inMount Holly, what is it that you
want to share about the missionof what is jump kids? What is it
about jump
Unknown (06:10):
kids? First of all, we use double dutch as our vehicle
to make mental health cool, andso it's a sisterhood, and boys
are on the team as well, butit's a sisterhood for girls to
be a part of something positive,an opportunity to do things that
they probably wouldn't have theopportunity to do if they
(06:32):
weren't jump kids. Whetherthey're marginalized or not,
whether they're privileged ornot, going to the Olympics, is
not something that you couldjust do, you know? Yeah. And
because of these two littleropes, they had the opportunity
to go to the Olympics. They hadthe opportunity to do
commercials and fly first classto California for Apple
commercial. When the watch firstcame out, like we were the ones
(06:54):
who had it on their knees andjumping double digit, they were
testing it, doing jump rope,like cool things like that. So
it's for everybody. It's acommunity. It brings people
together. And I'm so passionateabout it, because I know what it
has done for me. It created aplatform for me to see the
world, to realize and understandthat the world is bigger than
(07:14):
Newark, New Jersey, and I get tomeet fine people like you.
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (07:19):
You know, it's interesting. You have the
jump kids for health and thatmission, and then I know you
also have the wrapping the ropesaround the aces, the adverse
childhood experiences and tofight childhood obesity. Tell me
how you kind of morphed intothat as well.
Unknown (07:37):
So after I was on the show jump on Lifetime, we
started traveling, teaching andjumping and starting new teens,
and I realized that these youthneeded more than just double
dutch technique. They neededprofessionals to talk about
issues outside of the rope, totalk about things they're
dealing with in school, outside,outside of school, conflict
resolution. So I'm like, Wait,this is bigger than a mentor,
(08:01):
right? I need to bring in somefolks who have gone to school
for this, who are practicingthis, yeah, outside of their
physical ability, like, that'swhere my expertise lies. So I
reached out to some therapists,and they said, This is a
brilliant idea. So I startedbuilding out the infrastructure
of the company. It also helpedus with with funding the team,
(08:24):
because obviously some grantsare for three years. Two years
they switch up. They're going adifferent direction now. So now
it fluctuates. So one year wemight be set, the next year we
might not. But with this,parents are allowed to not allow
but they're able to bill forthese services, because it's a
health program. Now that'swonderful, and that offsets a
lot of the cost with travelingand competing, et cetera. So it
(08:46):
kind of blew into
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (08:48):
Yeah, and I just want to go over, you know,
you specify that some of thethings that you touch on, you
know, mental health, but youalso do nutrition programs of,
you know, youth that might haveeating disorders, food
allergies, intolerance, IBS, youknow, stomach issues, pre
diabetes, high cholesterol. It'sso interesting to, you know,
(09:14):
meet someone that has such aunique, you know, way of taking
the sport of double dutch orjust recreation, let's just say,
because, I mean, a lot of peopledon't, can, don't think about
double dutch as a sport, but itis, and we're going to talk
about the future of what you'rehoping to do. But how do you
(09:35):
take, like, the jump ropes, andthen talk about these things,
like, how do you mesh ittogether? What? What's that like
when, when a young woman comesin and they want to be a part of
that, but maybe they also havesome things they want to talk to
somebody about, sure,
Unknown (09:50):
so it's like, remember, you, you would go to school, and
your teacher would say, if youdon't, if you don't behave,
you're not going outside. Yeah,you would miss recess, or you
would miss physical education.Yes. Think, and it was stink,
right? And so they want to bethe best at Double Dutch. They
want to do it. They want to beso good that they're actually
listening to an adult now. Solike, in order to be an athlete,
(10:11):
have to watch out for what youeat. You have to put the good
things in your body so that youcan perform well, so that your
brain is operating correctly, sothat you can do what you need to
do. So once we get them in thatroom and we share with them,
this is how you become the bestdouble Dutcher, then they begin
to listen to the nutritionalcounselor, then they begin to
listen to the therapist, andthey're like, Okay, I have to
(10:33):
get all of these thingsconnected so that I can be a
great athlete. And so then weget to talk to their parents.
Hey, Mom, they can't have fastfood during the week. They can't
have no junk food, no sugar, nosugary drinks. And when they
make their own healthy snacks,they eat it. So if we're cutting
up part of it, you're part ofit, and then they're willing to
(10:55):
eat it. So if they go out thereand they grow their fruits and
their vegetables, statisticsshow that they're more likely to
eat more fruits and vegetablesif they're the ones that grew
the vegetables. Yeah, so that'swe use.
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (11:05):
So who was your inspiration to help you
grow to where you are today? Oh,I know it's a loaded question.
Unknown (11:12):
I would have to say the leadership at the Boys and Girls
Club, and I would have to say mymom. She She was amazing.
Raising four knuckleheads, I saythis whole Sorry, I got four
brothers. It's only me. Soraising four brothers and myself
by herself. Wow, while stillmaintaining and trying to
(11:34):
accomplish her goals, I waslike, if she could do it with no
car and by herself, I can mostcertainly do it with technology,
a car, a husband, well nowbecause of double dutch, yeah,
and all of the things that wehave at our fingertips. So I
just map out my goals, I writethem down, and I look at the
(11:56):
kids and see what it's doing forthem. And that's what motivates
me to keep going. You
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (12:00):
know, I bring up a lot on the Baroness.
We have a lot of women in here,and they talk about a
sisterhood, and you use thatterm, and a lot of my guests use
this term of sisterhood as,like, the group that keeps them
risen and uplifts them. Youknow, when they need help and
when they need support, who arethose people that are in your
(12:20):
sisterhood, of your network ofsisterhood. Well, I'll
Unknown (12:23):
just alluded back to the rope. Uh, your Turners. You
depend on them, and those arethe two people that's
controlling the rope. Okay, um,you depend on them. They watch
you, and they read your bodylanguage, so they depend on you
to keep going so that they canyou all can accomplish whatever
that goal is. If it's 300 stepsin two minutes, then everybody's
(12:44):
depending on each other. Andonce you get that type of
connection, you can't lose it.Doesn't go away after the ropes,
right? Yeah, later on, you mayneed somebody to talk to. You
may need someone to just go tothe store with you. You may need
someone to ride with you. Sothose are the same people that
you reach back and ask forassistance when you're not in
the rope. What has
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (13:03):
been the best relationship that you've
built from the rope?
Unknown (13:08):
I have friends that have been my friends since eight
years old, and they're not evenin the state. It's so crazy.
They got friends in SouthCarolina who are now coaches
that bring their teams to myorganization and compete in my
league, because I run the leagueas well.
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (13:24):
Just add that to the three page bio.
Unknown (13:30):
But yeah, we've been friends forever, so yeah, they
like the competition. Yeah, theyhave kids to participate, but
they're supporting a friend.They're supporting my lead. They
can be anywhere else, butthey're going to make sure that
they support my lead because ofthe friendship that we've
developed since eight years old.So I would call on coaches, I
would call on some of thejudges, I would even call on
(13:50):
some kids that grew up throughmy program, because then they
have a different perspective onit. A child coming up through
the program, right? I think youshould change it, because this
is what we were looking for whenwe were kids, or this is what
you need to do now, because thisgeneration is different from
when you were jumping and, youknow, on the floor.
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (14:07):
What keeps you going and growing this whole
part of your life? You know,it's so interesting to me that
you were like, I'm sitting onthe corner one day, and I'm
like, yeah, let me go check itout around the corner and it it
there was just, it's that ahamoment, it's that spark, and now
it's, it's your life, it's yourlifeline, it's your blood. You
know, it's in your blood, whatkeeps you going every day to
(14:31):
support this passion?
Unknown (14:33):
A lot of people tell me, like, if you're running the
league, why are you stillcoaching? I think if I stop
coaching, I won't have that samemotivation. What keeps me going
is watching that introvertedchild turn into an extroverted
child in 30 to 60 days becausethey accomplished something in a
rope. I can I love to see achild jump in a rope for the
(14:57):
first time, actually rewind,not. Thinking they can jump in
the road, not thinking they cando it, and then actually doing
it on their first or second try.And now she's like, I'm the
bomb. I can do anything in theworld because I just did this.
So watching them transform intothis confident child, that's
what keeps me going.
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (15:17):
I love that you use the word transformation,
and I think that you have becomethe transformation for this
sport. Can you tell the audienceabout what your hopes and dreams
are for double dutch and whatyou've been working towards for
the future?
Unknown (15:34):
So the National Association for double dutch
orgs is the competing leaguethat I founded, and I'm the
president of unfortunately, thesport is very segregated now.
The past 1015, years, it hasbecome a very segregated sport,
and so we have a memorandum ofunderstanding with the governing
(15:56):
body to ensure that AfricanAmerican girls can participate
in this sport at the highestlevel, and that is the Olympics.
So that's what I'm working onnow. And the next month or two,
I'm going to be launching acampaign to teach 100,000 new
girls how to jump Double Dutch.And from that pool, we're going
(16:17):
to get competitors toparticipate in these in these
teams across the country, andhope to hopefully jump in the
Olympics. Can you
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (16:25):
believe you that you just said that, like,
I'm going to work on an 100,000people. I mean, that's amazing.
It
Unknown (16:33):
is, and we're going to need the community to help with
that.
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (16:36):
So how can this, how can the community
help? How do they find you? Howdo they find out about you? How
do they sign up? How do we getyou in front of people? How do
they find out about you?
Unknown (16:47):
So absolutely and thank you for giving me this platform.
Oh, my God, thank you. I'm
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (16:51):
honored that you're here. This is
unbelievable.
Unknown (16:54):
If you want to support the local team, jump kids
health, or jump kids DoubleDutch team, you can go to our
website, jumpkidshealth.org, youyou can support them by
sponsoring a girl to participatein the program. If you want to
get if you want to get involvedon a on the national level, you
can go to Nadd org.org, and youcan sign up to become a judge,
(17:15):
to become a volunteer, to becomea sponsor. All of those
opportunities or on our website.I
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (17:22):
mean, the story is amazing, and what I'd
love for you to share is, what'sthat one story of you know,
some, some young woman that hascome through the doors and has
been on the rope, and they'vejust transformed in front of
you, and you've made an impact.Share us that story.
Unknown (17:43):
I can remember a young lady walking into our doors. Her
mom is was a relative to mypartner at the time, and she was
so introverted, literally wouldcry at practice every day. And
I'm like, I don't think she isnot a good fit. Like, I don't
think so, but my partner washit. Just give us some time.
Just give us some time. And fastforward about a year in, she
(18:08):
became the best Turner on theteam, literally turning about
364 steps or circles in twominutes. They only count the
left circle or the left footright. So she mastered turning
so well, and then we transformedher to do some tricks in the
rope. And so she became thisextroverted, extroverted child,
(18:33):
so much so that she became thespokesperson for the team. We
did a off Broadway show in NewYork. And it was an audience of
about 500 spectators or viewers.And she walked up there, brave,
then caring, out of care in theworld, and she introduced us. We
(18:56):
are so and so and so and so, andwe're here to do this. And she
said it was so much confidence Idropped the
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (19:04):
tear I was in. You're like, that's not the
same person. You couldn'tbelieve it was the same her, not
her. That
Unknown (19:08):
is not her. And she have gone on to graduate
college, led that team to thefirst championship on the debate
team, the first champion debateteam for that university. Wow,
in decades since the 70s. Wow.And she led that champion team,
not volleyball, not a debateteam. I'm like, what happened?
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (19:32):
But see, this is just that one story.
There's 1000s of these storiesyou have. You have developed
into these talents, and it's,and I know you're shutting it to
your because it's so it'semotional, right? Because it is
your it's your life, and, and,and I, I can hear that in the
way you're speaking in yourpassion, just about you. And
(19:56):
this journey is just so stellar.I mean, it's so amazing. Okay,
before we wrap up. Every time Iinterview somebody, we talk
about some highlighted wordsthat you said, and we talk about
a thought of an overall hashtagof what you want to leave, what
you want to leave here withyou've said so many powerful
(20:18):
words throughout our time herewe had sisterhood, depend, keep
going, communication,accomplishment, connection,
engagement, future, adversity,experiences. If you could put
your entire idea of jump kidsfor health and your career into
(20:39):
a hashtag, what would thathashtag be?
Unknown (20:42):
Hashtag, keep
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (20:44):
jumping. Hashtag, keep jumping. Awesome.
I thank you, Queen of doubledutch, queen, I'm sure you have
a few pieces of swag that havethat on it. I mean, you must. I
love it. I love it. Tell ourviewers where they can find out
(21:04):
about you. Again, if you're onInsta and everything, please go
Unknown (21:07):
to Instagram. Follow at jump kids health, at N, A, D, D,
O, dot, double dutch, and thenmy personal one. Of course you
can follow me, the double dutchqueen, love
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (21:21):
it. Everybody. Follow the double
ditch queen, this has been theBaroness podcast, and thank you
so much for listening in. Takecare. Thanks. You've been
listening
Jason Varga (21:30):
to the rcbc Baroness podcast, which
highlights women in leadership,while encouraging listeners to
build their skills, connect withthe community and visualize the
opportunities available to womenin various professions. For more
information about this podcastor other podcast available on
the rcbc Podcast Network, visitrcbc.edu/podcast and be sure to
subscribe to the rcbc Baronesspodcast available on all
(21:51):
streaming platforms you.
Welcome to Rowan College of Burlington
County's Baroness Podcast. I'mDr Brooke Mailhiot, program
chair and assistant professor ofour entertainment technologies
department. I am the co chair ofthe Women's Advocacy Group, a
subcommittee of the President'sAdvisory Council on diversity,
equity and inclusion. Thismonthly series highlights women
in leadership while encouraginglisteners to build their skills,
(00:22):
connect with the community andvisualize the opportunities
available to women in variousprofessions, tune in here for a
female perspective on theBurlington County community. We
are here to listen to theseamazing women, and if you want
to hear from women who lead andinspire, this podcast is for you
in September. Boy, are we readyfor some inspiration to
(00:46):
jumpstart this semester? Icertainly am. We are in need of
a little motivation andinspiration, and today, I am
honored to have Laila Little akadouble dutch queen, yes, yes,
internationally known in thesport of double dutch for over
25 years, and recognized allover the world for her many
accomplishments. You may havewatched her show jump that aired
(01:09):
on Lifetime network in 2016 butnot just on Lifetime. What about
spots on Good Morning America,Dr Oz picks 11 news and Ben Aron
Mrs. Little was invited to theWhite House during the Obama
administration, and she hasranked the 17th most influential
coaches by coach seek and touchthe lives of over 15,000 youth
(01:31):
around the globe. Seeing theimpact on double dutch that she
has created, she has inspired usto establish jump kids health, a
platform to clinically treatchildren physically, emotionally
and mentally jump. Kids healthis a mental health group that
focuses on adverse childexperiences and child obesity.
(01:51):
Thank you for joining us today.
Unknown (01:53):
Wow. Thanks for having me almost. Who is she talking
about? I
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (01:56):
am talking about you. What are you talking
about? I am talking about you. I
Unknown (02:00):
mean, sound amazing.
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (02:02):
It sounds amazing. I had to cut like, half
of it out because you have justdone everything and anything
like, really, I don't know howyou fit time in the day, but you
are just, you're a powerhouse.It's unbelievable. So what I
want to do is just tell us, youknow, double dutch, and then you
(02:23):
morphed it into this such aunique like, method of just
communication and inspirationand motivation for women. Just
like, how did that come about?
Unknown (02:38):
Um, you know, I started this whole journey at the young
age of eight. Not going to tellmy age, but it's been over 30
years I've been doing this, andit kind of just like you said,
it just blossomed into this bigthing. I started out just I
wanted to start my own team, andit became a training facility,
it became a business, and Iliterally had to learn how to
(03:00):
run a business while doing it.So, like you said, when I hear
these things that I've done on alist, I'm like, wow, that's a
lot. Like, I didn't even knowworking every day and making
sure that marginalizedcommunities, girls and
marginalized communities, getthese opportunities and access
to these spaces. I don't evenrealize that. Yeah, I've done
(03:22):
that. I've done Dr Oz, I've doneGood Morning America. I've done,
you know, the White House metthe president. Well,
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (03:29):
I'm honored to have you sit across from me
because, like, I'm not worthy.This is crazy. And
Unknown (03:34):
again, look where I am at a university, I
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (03:38):
know, right? It is crazy. So double
dutch, for those of ourlisteners who don't know what
double dutch is like, how didyou get involved in Double
Dutch? Like, you know, that'snot kind of the social norm
extracurricular activity we allthink about getting involved in.
Unknown (03:57):
You know, what's crazy is, I always say, How did I been
for my mom? I wouldn't be inDouble Dutch. She was a single
parent. She was in school fulltime and working school full
time, and so she would alwayspick me up from school late. I
would be the only one there withthe security guard in my
elementary school. So I saw awhole bunch of friends walking
around the corner. I'm like,where are you guys going every
(04:17):
day? Yeah, like, we go to theBoys and Girls Club. It was
literally around the corner frommy school, okay? And so I said,
Well, I'll go too. Yeah. It waslike, God sent because when I
got there, I already had amembership, because I was a part
of this college ready program,okay? So we automatically got a
free membership. And so I wasaccepted in. And then my friends
told me that, hey, they got adouble edged team over there.
(04:40):
And I was like, I should tryout. They're like, Yeah, we
should all try out. So we alltried out, and we made it, and
we became the first New Jerseyteam to make it into the finals
and win World Championship,amazing, multiple times. So
you're
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (04:54):
so add to your bio world champion. Oh,
multiple worlds. Everything.Everything cool. Coach, multiple
World Champion coach, and all ofand I know we were just talking
about that, you just were at theOlympics. Tell me about that.
So, world champion to theOlympics. I mean, who can say,
like, that is the end all be,all of the sport, right? I mean,
(05:15):
let's
Unknown (05:15):
talk about that. Yeah, that is the global stage. And
yeah, I've been honored andprivileged to have that
experience. And not only justabout me, but I brought nine
ambassadors from Chicago,Newark, New Jersey, Atlanta to
Paris with me. And so the youthgot an opportunity to jump on
the global stage. And I alwayssay, regardless of whether it
becomes an official sport, theystill jumped on the global stage
(05:39):
at the Olympics, doing somethingthat they love. And so, yeah, I
brought this whole experiencedown here to Mount Holly,
Burlington County area. Istarted to jump kids in Mount
Holly, and I want to bring thoseexperiences to these youth in
Burlington County.
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (05:52):
So it was, you know, like you're saying,
you're taking this global stage,you're bringing it local. You're
talking you're right here inMount Holly, what is it that you
want to share about the missionof what is jump kids? What is it
about jump
Unknown (06:10):
kids? First of all, we use double dutch as our vehicle
to make mental health cool, andso it's a sisterhood, and boys
are on the team as well, butit's a sisterhood for girls to
be a part of something positive,an opportunity to do things that
they probably wouldn't have theopportunity to do if they
(06:32):
weren't jump kids. Whetherthey're marginalized or not,
whether they're privileged ornot, going to the Olympics, is
not something that you couldjust do, you know? Yeah. And
because of these two littleropes, they had the opportunity
to go to the Olympics. They hadthe opportunity to do
commercials and fly first classto California for Apple
commercial. When the watch firstcame out, like we were the ones
(06:54):
who had it on their knees andjumping double digit, they were
testing it, doing jump rope,like cool things like that. So
it's for everybody. It's acommunity. It brings people
together. And I'm so passionateabout it, because I know what it
has done for me. It created aplatform for me to see the
world, to realize and understandthat the world is bigger than
(07:14):
Newark, New Jersey, and I get tomeet fine people like you.
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (07:19):
You know, it's interesting. You have the
jump kids for health and thatmission, and then I know you
also have the wrapping the ropesaround the aces, the adverse
childhood experiences and tofight childhood obesity. Tell me
how you kind of morphed intothat as well.
Unknown (07:37):
So after I was on the show jump on Lifetime, we
started traveling, teaching andjumping and starting new teens,
and I realized that these youthneeded more than just double
dutch technique. They neededprofessionals to talk about
issues outside of the rope, totalk about things they're
dealing with in school, outside,outside of school, conflict
resolution. So I'm like, Wait,this is bigger than a mentor,
(08:01):
right? I need to bring in somefolks who have gone to school
for this, who are practicingthis, yeah, outside of their
physical ability, like, that'swhere my expertise lies. So I
reached out to some therapists,and they said, This is a
brilliant idea. So I startedbuilding out the infrastructure
of the company. It also helpedus with with funding the team,
(08:24):
because obviously some grantsare for three years. Two years
they switch up. They're going adifferent direction now. So now
it fluctuates. So one year wemight be set, the next year we
might not. But with this,parents are allowed to not allow
but they're able to bill forthese services, because it's a
health program. Now that'swonderful, and that offsets a
lot of the cost with travelingand competing, et cetera. So it
(08:46):
kind of blew into
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (08:48):
Yeah, and I just want to go over, you know,
you specify that some of thethings that you touch on, you
know, mental health, but youalso do nutrition programs of,
you know, youth that might haveeating disorders, food
allergies, intolerance, IBS, youknow, stomach issues, pre
diabetes, high cholesterol. It'sso interesting to, you know,
(09:14):
meet someone that has such aunique, you know, way of taking
the sport of double dutch orjust recreation, let's just say,
because, I mean, a lot of peopledon't, can, don't think about
double dutch as a sport, but itis, and we're going to talk
about the future of what you'rehoping to do. But how do you
(09:35):
take, like, the jump ropes, andthen talk about these things,
like, how do you mesh ittogether? What? What's that like
when, when a young woman comesin and they want to be a part of
that, but maybe they also havesome things they want to talk to
somebody about, sure,
Unknown (09:50):
so it's like, remember, you, you would go to school, and
your teacher would say, if youdon't, if you don't behave,
you're not going outside. Yeah,you would miss recess, or you
would miss physical education.Yes. Think, and it was stink,
right? And so they want to bethe best at Double Dutch. They
want to do it. They want to beso good that they're actually
listening to an adult now. Solike, in order to be an athlete,
(10:11):
have to watch out for what youeat. You have to put the good
things in your body so that youcan perform well, so that your
brain is operating correctly, sothat you can do what you need to
do. So once we get them in thatroom and we share with them,
this is how you become the bestdouble Dutcher, then they begin
to listen to the nutritionalcounselor, then they begin to
listen to the therapist, andthey're like, Okay, I have to
(10:33):
get all of these thingsconnected so that I can be a
great athlete. And so then weget to talk to their parents.
Hey, Mom, they can't have fastfood during the week. They can't
have no junk food, no sugar, nosugary drinks. And when they
make their own healthy snacks,they eat it. So if we're cutting
up part of it, you're part ofit, and then they're willing to
(10:55):
eat it. So if they go out thereand they grow their fruits and
their vegetables, statisticsshow that they're more likely to
eat more fruits and vegetablesif they're the ones that grew
the vegetables. Yeah, so that'swe use.
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (11:05):
So who was your inspiration to help you
grow to where you are today? Oh,I know it's a loaded question.
Unknown (11:12):
I would have to say the leadership at the Boys and Girls
Club, and I would have to say mymom. She She was amazing.
Raising four knuckleheads, I saythis whole Sorry, I got four
brothers. It's only me. Soraising four brothers and myself
by herself. Wow, while stillmaintaining and trying to
(11:34):
accomplish her goals, I waslike, if she could do it with no
car and by herself, I can mostcertainly do it with technology,
a car, a husband, well nowbecause of double dutch, yeah,
and all of the things that wehave at our fingertips. So I
just map out my goals, I writethem down, and I look at the
(11:56):
kids and see what it's doing forthem. And that's what motivates
me to keep going. You
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (12:00):
know, I bring up a lot on the Baroness.
We have a lot of women in here,and they talk about a
sisterhood, and you use thatterm, and a lot of my guests use
this term of sisterhood as,like, the group that keeps them
risen and uplifts them. Youknow, when they need help and
when they need support, who arethose people that are in your
(12:20):
sisterhood, of your network ofsisterhood. Well, I'll
Unknown (12:23):
just alluded back to the rope. Uh, your Turners. You
depend on them, and those arethe two people that's
controlling the rope. Okay, um,you depend on them. They watch
you, and they read your bodylanguage, so they depend on you
to keep going so that they canyou all can accomplish whatever
that goal is. If it's 300 stepsin two minutes, then everybody's
(12:44):
depending on each other. Andonce you get that type of
connection, you can't lose it.Doesn't go away after the ropes,
right? Yeah, later on, you mayneed somebody to talk to. You
may need someone to just go tothe store with you. You may need
someone to ride with you. Sothose are the same people that
you reach back and ask forassistance when you're not in
the rope. What has
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (13:03):
been the best relationship that you've
built from the rope?
Unknown (13:08):
I have friends that have been my friends since eight
years old, and they're not evenin the state. It's so crazy.
They got friends in SouthCarolina who are now coaches
that bring their teams to myorganization and compete in my
league, because I run the leagueas well.
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (13:24):
Just add that to the three page bio.
Unknown (13:30):
But yeah, we've been friends forever, so yeah, they
like the competition. Yeah, theyhave kids to participate, but
they're supporting a friend.They're supporting my lead. They
can be anywhere else, butthey're going to make sure that
they support my lead because ofthe friendship that we've
developed since eight years old.So I would call on coaches, I
would call on some of thejudges, I would even call on
(13:50):
some kids that grew up throughmy program, because then they
have a different perspective onit. A child coming up through
the program, right? I think youshould change it, because this
is what we were looking for whenwe were kids, or this is what
you need to do now, because thisgeneration is different from
when you were jumping and, youknow, on the floor.
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (14:07):
What keeps you going and growing this whole
part of your life? You know,it's so interesting to me that
you were like, I'm sitting onthe corner one day, and I'm
like, yeah, let me go check itout around the corner and it it
there was just, it's that ahamoment, it's that spark, and now
it's, it's your life, it's yourlifeline, it's your blood. You
know, it's in your blood, whatkeeps you going every day to
(14:31):
support this passion?
Unknown (14:33):
A lot of people tell me, like, if you're running the
league, why are you stillcoaching? I think if I stop
coaching, I won't have that samemotivation. What keeps me going
is watching that introvertedchild turn into an extroverted
child in 30 to 60 days becausethey accomplished something in a
rope. I can I love to see achild jump in a rope for the
(14:57):
first time, actually rewind,not. Thinking they can jump in
the road, not thinking they cando it, and then actually doing
it on their first or second try.And now she's like, I'm the
bomb. I can do anything in theworld because I just did this.
So watching them transform intothis confident child, that's
what keeps me going.
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (15:17):
I love that you use the word transformation,
and I think that you have becomethe transformation for this
sport. Can you tell the audienceabout what your hopes and dreams
are for double dutch and whatyou've been working towards for
the future?
Unknown (15:34):
So the National Association for double dutch
orgs is the competing leaguethat I founded, and I'm the
president of unfortunately, thesport is very segregated now.
The past 1015, years, it hasbecome a very segregated sport,
and so we have a memorandum ofunderstanding with the governing
(15:56):
body to ensure that AfricanAmerican girls can participate
in this sport at the highestlevel, and that is the Olympics.
So that's what I'm working onnow. And the next month or two,
I'm going to be launching acampaign to teach 100,000 new
girls how to jump Double Dutch.And from that pool, we're going
(16:17):
to get competitors toparticipate in these in these
teams across the country, andhope to hopefully jump in the
Olympics. Can you
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (16:25):
believe you that you just said that, like,
I'm going to work on an 100,000people. I mean, that's amazing.
It
Unknown (16:33):
is, and we're going to need the community to help with
that.
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (16:36):
So how can this, how can the community
help? How do they find you? Howdo they find out about you? How
do they sign up? How do we getyou in front of people? How do
they find out about you?
Unknown (16:47):
So absolutely and thank you for giving me this platform.
Oh, my God, thank you. I'm
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (16:51):
honored that you're here. This is
unbelievable.
Unknown (16:54):
If you want to support the local team, jump kids
health, or jump kids DoubleDutch team, you can go to our
website, jumpkidshealth.org, youyou can support them by
sponsoring a girl to participatein the program. If you want to
get if you want to get involvedon a on the national level, you
can go to Nadd org.org, and youcan sign up to become a judge,
(17:15):
to become a volunteer, to becomea sponsor. All of those
opportunities or on our website.I
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (17:22):
mean, the story is amazing, and what I'd
love for you to share is, what'sthat one story of you know,
some, some young woman that hascome through the doors and has
been on the rope, and they'vejust transformed in front of
you, and you've made an impact.Share us that story.
Unknown (17:43):
I can remember a young lady walking into our doors. Her
mom is was a relative to mypartner at the time, and she was
so introverted, literally wouldcry at practice every day. And
I'm like, I don't think she isnot a good fit. Like, I don't
think so, but my partner washit. Just give us some time.
Just give us some time. And fastforward about a year in, she
(18:08):
became the best Turner on theteam, literally turning about
364 steps or circles in twominutes. They only count the
left circle or the left footright. So she mastered turning
so well, and then we transformedher to do some tricks in the
rope. And so she became thisextroverted, extroverted child,
(18:33):
so much so that she became thespokesperson for the team. We
did a off Broadway show in NewYork. And it was an audience of
about 500 spectators or viewers.And she walked up there, brave,
then caring, out of care in theworld, and she introduced us. We
(18:56):
are so and so and so and so, andwe're here to do this. And she
said it was so much confidence Idropped the
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (19:04):
tear I was in. You're like, that's not the
same person. You couldn'tbelieve it was the same her, not
her. That
Unknown (19:08):
is not her. And she have gone on to graduate
college, led that team to thefirst championship on the debate
team, the first champion debateteam for that university. Wow,
in decades since the 70s. Wow.And she led that champion team,
not volleyball, not a debateteam. I'm like, what happened?
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (19:32):
But see, this is just that one story.
There's 1000s of these storiesyou have. You have developed
into these talents, and it's,and I know you're shutting it to
your because it's so it'semotional, right? Because it is
your it's your life, and, and,and I, I can hear that in the
way you're speaking in yourpassion, just about you. And
(19:56):
this journey is just so stellar.I mean, it's so amazing. Okay,
before we wrap up. Every time Iinterview somebody, we talk
about some highlighted wordsthat you said, and we talk about
a thought of an overall hashtagof what you want to leave, what
you want to leave here withyou've said so many powerful
(20:18):
words throughout our time herewe had sisterhood, depend, keep
going, communication,accomplishment, connection,
engagement, future, adversity,experiences. If you could put
your entire idea of jump kidsfor health and your career into
(20:39):
a hashtag, what would thathashtag be?
Unknown (20:42):
Hashtag, keep
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (20:44):
jumping. Hashtag, keep jumping. Awesome.
I thank you, Queen of doubledutch, queen, I'm sure you have
a few pieces of swag that havethat on it. I mean, you must. I
love it. I love it. Tell ourviewers where they can find out
(21:04):
about you. Again, if you're onInsta and everything, please go
Unknown (21:07):
to Instagram. Follow at jump kids health, at N, A, D, D,
O, dot, double dutch, and thenmy personal one. Of course you
can follow me, the double dutchqueen, love
Dr. Brooke Mailhiot (21:21):
it. Everybody. Follow the double
ditch queen, this has been theBaroness podcast, and thank you
so much for listening in. Takecare. Thanks. You've been
listening
Jason Varga (21:30):
to the rcbc Baroness podcast, which
highlights women in leadership,while encouraging listeners to
build their skills, connect withthe community and visualize the
opportunities available to womenin various professions. For more
information about this podcastor other podcast available on
the rcbc Podcast Network, visitrcbc.edu/podcast and be sure to
subscribe to the rcbc Baronesspodcast available on all
(21:51):
streaming platforms you.
Popular Podcasts
Amy Robach & T.J. Holmes present: Aubrey O’Day, Covering the Diddy Trial
Introducing… Aubrey O’Day Diddy’s former protege, television personality, platinum selling music artist, Danity Kane alum Aubrey O’Day joins veteran journalists Amy Robach and TJ Holmes to provide a unique perspective on the trial that has captivated the attention of the nation. Join them throughout the trial as they discuss, debate, and dissect every detail, every aspect of the proceedings. Aubrey will offer her opinions and expertise, as only she is qualified to do given her first-hand knowledge. From her days on Making the Band, as she emerged as the breakout star, the truth of the situation would be the opposite of the glitz and glamour. Listen throughout every minute of the trial, for this exclusive coverage. Amy Robach and TJ Holmes present Aubrey O’Day, Covering the Diddy Trial, an iHeartRadio podcast.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
The Breakfast Club
The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy And Charlamagne Tha God!