The sound of the fighter jet roars as the aircraft flies through the sky before their jump destination. The paratroopers are getting set to jump, but first, all their essentials need to be placed in their parachutes and backpacks.
One Lethbridge College Kodiak basketball player was used to this kind of surrounding before she laced up her sneakers.
Denajha Kie is a first-year shooting guard on the Lethbridge College Kodiaks women’s basketball team. She is currently in her third eligible collegiate season. Similar to most recruits, she comes from afar. However, her story is vastly different.
Kie originally started her collegiate basketball career at the College of Southern Idaho. She stayed for one season, then joined the U.S. military for three and a half years.
The former soldier was stationed in Germany for two and a half years where her specialized role was a parachute rigger, otherwise known as a “92 Romeo,” in which her duties were to pack parachutes for the soldiers who jumped from the fighter planes. Kie was also a paratrooper who jumped out of these planes, while additionally, was classified as a “92 Goff,” which is a culinary arts specialist.
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The shooting guard said the biggest change from soldier to civilian was having to let go of the everyday structure that is required of a military member. She missed having the same routine every day and performing what was expected of her day in and out.
The first-year Kodiak said it was hard for her to leave. However, basketball was the first dream before the military came into play and Kie thought she had some unfinished business.
“I was missing basketball so much. That was my first dream, so I should finish that first. If this doesn’t work out in the long-term, I would go back and apply for an officer position within the military,” said the shooting guard.
Kie said basketball was the only thing that could have pried her away from serving more time.
“Basketball is the only thing that could pull me away actually. I didn’t want to leave the military, but I still felt like I wasn’t finished with basketball yet,” said the first-year Kodiaks player.
Although basketball has been present in her life, Kie believes serving in the military taught her some valuable lessons that she has applied to the court this season.
“Hard work and determination. I work hard every day. The army taught me to work hard, teamwork, leadership, stuff like that. I try to lead by example all the time.”
Deanna Simpson, Kodiak’s women’s basketball head coach, can attest to Kie’s leadership qualities, which was part of the reason she had recruited her.
“She is everything you want in a player. I mean she works her tail off in practice; she goes after it. She does everything you ask her to as a coach. When I recruited her, I told her I was recruiting her for her stuff off the floor, just as much as on the floor. We have got a young group out there, so to have someone older come in to say ‘this how we do it. I didn’t get everything handed to me, I had to work for it,’ really has value to our locker room,” said the head coach.
Simpson said in a lot of ways, that stuff is exponentially more important than what she does on the basketball court.
“She’s not only a great player, but she is creating other great players,” said the bench boss.
Simpson said Kie’s addition to the team this season has helped her and the other coaches in improving, not just in an athlete’s abilities of the team, but also improving them as people off the court.
Kie is currently averaging 15 points per game and is hoping to chase an Alberta Collegiate Athletic Conference title and a national title with her teammates throughout her time left with the Kodiaks.
