by By Dan Ninham (Oneida)
Everyone plays lacrosse in the Schindler family. Their interconnected lives revolve around lacrosse.
“I compete in lacrosse,” said Kimaura Schindler. “Training is great, I usually train three-four times with my father, Gewas Schindler, or at the Athlete Farm that is a gym outside my community. I mostly focus on building strength, along with speed and agility. Right now it’s the off-season, so I only practice once a week with my team.”
“I am 5-11 and I’m 125 lbs.,” said Kimaura. “I attend school at Assumption College School and I’m in 10th grade.”
“I am from the Cayuga Nation and I’m Wolf Clan. I live in Six Nations of the Grand River in Ontario Canada. My parents are Gewas (Oneida) and Tia Schindler (Cayuga),” added Kimaura.
“We are taught to be grateful,” said Kimaura. “I’m very lucky to be able to play lacrosse at the level that I am at now. I’m lucky to come from a family that is very supportive and encouraging of my goals and dreams. I am very proud of who I am. I’m the only native on my team, so I like sharing my culture with my team.”
“I’m very lucky to have two great grandparents,” said Kimaura. “They have been two important guideposts in my life. My Great-Grampa Buck has been inspirational and someone I look up too. He has always been one of my big supporters. He’s really great at building my confidence and is always telling me how much he believes in me. That means a lot because he was such an accomplished lacrosse player. He knows how much hard work and dedication it takes to reach your goals, so he’s always encouraging me to push a little more and to not be afraid to step out of my comfort zone. Plus, he’s really funny. Even when he’s being serious, he always ends our talks with a joke.”
“My Great-Gramma Sky is someone I aspire to be like. She is very passionate about everything she does, whether it’s cooking, her duties at our ceremonies, or our family, its always 100% with her and same for my Grampa Buck. My Great Gramma played lacrosse and so did my Gramma. I’m a fourth generation lacrosse player which is very uncommon, and I take a lot of pride knowing I come from a strong maternal line. Both of my Great Grandparents are in their 80’s and still giving it there all,” added Kimaura.
“Since I started lacrosse my dream was to represent my Nation,” said Kimaura. “In 2019, I played on the Haudenosaunee National Women’s Lacrosse team as a 15 year old. I started every game in the tournament. We recently won Gold at the very first Pan American Lacrosse Association Qualifier. I currently play with Monster Lacrosse out of Rochester (NY).”
“I have had the pleasure of coaching both the Haudenosaunee Women’s U19 Team and Haudenosaunee Women’s PALA Qualifier Team,” said Leah Gallagher, Women’s Lacrosse Assistant Coach at the University of Albany. “I was able to work with Kimaura Schindler on a daily basis, specifically on the defensive end where I serve as the position coach. Kimaura is hands down one of the hardest workers and most coachable players I have come across. She is so eager to learn and put to use any knowledge handed to her, and she does so with the most incredible attitude. Kimaura lights up the field with her intelligence and grace. But don’t let her grace and pleasant demeanor fool you, she is incredibly fierce, strong, and more than willing to step up and show up to any challenge. I cannot wait to coach Kimaura in the years to come and witness first hand the incredible woman she is already well on her way to becoming.”
“Kimaura is a very intense young athlete she plays at a level well above her grade and age,” said Ronnie Davis, Director of Monster Elite Lacrosse. “If it wasn’t for her birthday being late she would’ve been a starting member of the Haudenosaunee national team. Although going thru the disappointment that she was not old enough to play in the games she still made every practice and competed against all of the older girls on the team. As her coach for the Monster 22 team she has proven her leadership and athleticism by maintaining her level as one of the top defensive players in the country.”
“I think she was influenced by our Haudenosaunee National Women’s Lacrosse (HNWL) team in 2013,” said mom Tia. “Once she started playing she quickly became a natural defender. She also wanted more coaching, wanted more knowledge. She has always been one push herself to the next level, soaking up every bit of knowledge she could. She has taken any and every opportunity to make herself better. She travels two-three times a week to Rochester, a six hour round trip, to play on a elite lacrosse team for the past four years. To say that she has sacrificed a lot of family and friend time is an understatement and she has never complained. She gets herself up in the morning for school after getting home late from practice, and often does homework in the car.”
“Kimaura has always had her eye on representing herself, family and Nation at the international level. In November she played for HNWL in the inaugural Pan American Lacrosse Association Qualifier. She started in all the games in the tournament and was the youngest player of the team,” added Tia.
Photo Credit: Kimaura Schindler
