Jill Heiner: I hope to be known as someone who was kind, caring, and a person who will always be there for family and friends.

Name: Jill Heiner

Instagram Handle/Username: jill.sk8ter

Introduce Yourself/Tell About Yourself: Hi I’m Jill! I am 18 years old, a senior in high school, and I’ve been figure skating for 12 years. I love coffee and I enjoy teaching younger skaters new skills!

What Inspires You Every day? : I would say that being able to talk to family and friends inspires me because I am fortunate to have people who are so positive no matter what the circumstances are. Being able to skate also inspires me a because I love being able to do triples, present my programs, and bring a smile to someone’s face because of skating.

What is some words of wisdom you live by?: Philippians 4:13 and “Stay Positive”. Being able to pray during Covid, competitions, or tests help calm my nerves and reassure myself that I have prepared the best I could and be confident in my work. Being positive is SO important!! Near the end of the lockdown, I got a stress fracture in my left foot from trying to stay in skating shape while the rinks were closed. Having the injury along with not being able to skate lead me to a dark place that I don’t want to experience again. Without positivity, it was so easy to forget to be grateful for my life and understand that lots of people are being affected by Covid, not just me.

What is your ultimate goal in life? : I hope to be known as someone who was kind, caring, and a person who will always be there for family and friends. I also hope continue to skate for a long time and I want to share my knowledge of skating with future generations until my doctor tells me to.

How have you been during the pandemic and how has it affected you? : Dealing with some depression was pretty difficult to deal with but the hardest part of covid was not being able to see my friends face to face. I mean FaceTime is good but not being able to hug any of my friends during depressing times just sucked. A hug would have helped me know that things will get better and we can all defeat Covid together. The one good thing that came from the lockdown would be learning how to not dwell on the past and keep moving forward. When I got back on ice I realized that my jumps did not look as great as they did before covid, but in order to improve I had to forget and work even harder than I did before.

What is a positive message you would like to give others? : Any time you are having a bad day like failing a test or being rejected from your dream college, think of others who have it worse than you. Think of the people fighting cancer, people having not enough money to put food on the table today or people who are being constantly abused. Realize that your life is great, remember those who are less unfortunate, and then make your day better by forgetting about what made the day bad.

What questions would you like to ask others?: What event in your life made you the person you are today? How do you cope with underlying doubts?