Erica: Hey, girl. By now, you know I have Her Collective, my online community for ambitious women who are done doing it alone. Her Collective is for the women who are smart, capable, and driven, but they find themselves stuck on the sticky floors like self doubt, burnout, and waiting for permission that quite honestly never comes. Inside her, you get more than motivation. You get real support, real strategies, and real momentum. We work on things like clarifying what you want now and what's coming next, building confidence without burning yourself out, navigating hard conversations, career moves, and leadership moments with clarity, and surrounding yourself with women who actually get it. This isn't about hustling harder. It's about moving intentionally with the right tools and the right people in your corner. If you're ready to stop spinning, start choosing yourself, and build a career in life that actually feels aligned, I'd love to welcome you inside her collective. You can learn more and join us at www.joinhercollective.com. Because honestly, girl, you were never meant to do this alone. I'm your host, Erica Rooney, and today, I have Whitney Paronish, a sports junkie from Northern Cambria, Pennsylvania who now works the beat as a patrol officer in Downtown Vancouver with the Vancouver Police Department. Whitney is married to her wife, Roxy, for eight years now and has a two year old mini goldendoodle named Gus, and she joins us today to talk about her sticky floor, which surrounds living life against the grain when it comes to gender roles. So, Whitney, super pumped to have you here today. How are you?

Whitney: I'm good. Thanks for having me.

Erica: Awesome. Joining us all the way from Vancouver, which is super cool. So so happy to have you here, but I would love to hear a little bit more about your story, your background, kinda how how did we get to this spot in life?

Whitney: Yeah. Of course. Yeah. I went to school to be a gym teacher, which I did for a bit when I was living in Pennsylvania. Started playing football and that's when I met my wife, Roxy. She's Canadian. So after a few years, I moved to Toronto. Then she got moved out to Vancouver for work, which obviously brought me here, which is when I was kind of looking for a switch up. I was no longer teaching and I happened to run across a recruiting event for the VPD. And I was like, whatever. We'll see what happens. And within probably six months, I was hired and I started academy. So I've been on for about three years now. And yeah, that's where we're at.

Erica: That's awesome. I feel like most people who are in the police department are there because they grow up being like, I'm gonna be a police officer, but you just kinda stumbled upon it.

Whitney: Yeah. Totally. I mean, most of the people I work with, that's that's how it was for them. They knew what they wanted to do. So it's definitely rare to be in the spot I am. But, yeah, it's been it's been good. It's been interesting for sure.

Erica: I love it. Well, let's go let's take it all the way back to childhood. Right? Because you and I talked about growing up and kind of how you grew up living life against the grain. So I would love to hear about that.

Whitney: Yeah. So when I was young, I started playing football. I wrestled and played the other sports. But with those two, I mean, that was in the early nineties. It was not today. There wasn't there wasn't as much space for for girls playing sports

Erica: Yeah.

Whitney: That were considered for the boys as there is now. But I never really thought much about it. It was just, this is what I like to do and I did it. My family was super supportive. It was never like, oh, that's not really where you belong or that's not what you should be doing. It was just, if that's what you like, then then go for it. And it was awesome until it wasn't. So I ran into a lot of issues as I got older of the boys not wanting to play with me, not wanting to wrestle me. So I got to the point where I would show up to wrestling matches and they would be like, oh, your opponent forfeited. And I started to realize that it was probably because I was a female. Yeah. So I was kind of forced to to quit because that was no longer fun for me because I wasn't doing what I was there to do. So I think that was kind of a a hard lesson to learn because for the longest time, I wasn't even thinking about it. I was just doing something I loved.

Erica: Right. It's interesting because it really puts into play how society plays, like, the largest role when it comes to that. Right? Because you didn't grow up thinking I shouldn't be doing this because I'm a girl. You grew up thinking I wanna do this because I'm having fun doing it.

Whitney: Totally. Yeah. And I had that support.

Erica: Yeah.

Whitney: And I didn't I didn't see it until all of a sudden I was forced to. And then it's not obviously that I no longer wanted to. It was just there wasn't really space. So then I was kinda forced to find where that space was. Yes.

Erica: Yeah. So how did you find that space? I know you've got a story with football in particular that kind of

Whitney: you're right. Yeah. I mean, I played, obviously, the sports that were for for girls with the girls' teams. And then when I went to college, I started playing rugby, which I'd never played before. I was always interested in it, but coming from a small town, that's not something we had. And then when I went to school, I joined the rugby team. Bons of similar women to me, which was awesome. I was able to go out and hit people and it'd be okay on the field rather than, oh, you're girls. You don't do that. I'm really good. After I graduated from college, one of my friends was like, hey. I heard about this football league. It's called the Lingerie Football League.

Erica: Oh, good.

Whitney: I had never heard of it. So at first, my reaction was kind of the same as yours. Yeah. Because the the name comes with a perception. So I went and checked it out, and it was awesome. So it was kind of that decision between do I play football and a bikini, or do I not play? And I decided to give it a shot. And to be honest with you, it was awesome. I mean, there was a ton of phenomenal athletes. Most of them came across from all different sports, basketball players, track people, everything. And it was cool because it was nice to be on the team and have that, that team sense and have be surrounded by similar people with a, like a mindset that's all the same. But of course it came with its challenges as well, because we are constantly trying to prove that we are a sports team, not just an entertainment team. So every time you told someone what you were doing, it was the same conversation over and over again. Like, I get what you think, and I get the name. However, just come check it out. Yeah. It was you have to see it to know. But we were Let

Erica: me ask you a question about about the football team for people listening and also for myself. But for sure, was it created for the intent of entertainment, right, but that happened to draw women who had a love of the game and wanted to play, and they were like, this is how I can do it.

Whitney: Oh, absolutely. When the the start of it was simply a Super Bowl halftime show. So it was run as a pay per view. It started out as think of Victoria's Secret models. Yeah. It was literally women that they believed looked good in a bikini, and they were thrown around this ball. I'm sure they had no idea about the sport. And then it kind of grew and snowballed into women that actually wanted to play.

Erica: True. Yeah. Like a true athlete.

Whitney: Think it and a lot of people there were people that knew of it when it started. So that's the vision that they had

Erica: Right.

Whitney: Forever.

Erica: I mean, there's so many thoughts already about this. Right? That, like, that's Yeah. Where we have to go for someone to be able to play football.

Whitney: Yeah. Totally.

Erica: I mean, at the whole different level of, like, sexism right there.

Whitney: Yeah. I mean and and there was a lot of that that we dealt with. I mean, we were expected to look a certain way.

Erica: Yeah.

Whitney: But it was like, let's go get our hair and makeup done to play our football game. Wow. So that was always a struggle for me, but it was always came back to but this weighing out the options I wanted to play. And when we were there playing, it was phenomenal and it was great football and there were phenomenal athletes, and there was it was hard hitting football, and it was athletic. However, there is always that that other side of it that you kind of had to put up with just to be able to do it.

Erica: Hey there, listeners. If you have ever felt like you're stuck in a place, held back by self doubt, perfectionism, or that pesky inner critic, you're not alone. We all face those sticky floors that keep us from reaching the heights we dream of. But guess what? It's time to shatter those limiting beliefs and toxic behaviors to uncover infinite possibilities. My book, Glass Ceilings and Sticky Floors, is your ultimate guide to smashing through barriers, overcoming limiting beliefs, and stepping into your full potential. This book has been endorsed by none other than the great Mel Robbins, best selling author and motivational powerhouse. It's also been featured in Success Magazine, so you know it's packed with insights that work. Inside, you'll find real life sticky floor stories, practical strategies strategies to help you navigate your own sticky floor moments, and a whole lot of inspiration to keep you climbing. This isn't just a book. It's your road map to success, confidence, and freedom. Grab your copy of Glass Ceilings and Sticky Floors today at www.ericaandersonrooney.com. Whether you're in the boardroom, the classroom, or just starting out, this book is for you because no one, and I mean no one, deserves That's I mean, it's just wild. It's just Yeah. Wild is the only word I really there's a lot of other words, but wild is the one word. So how long did you do that for? Three years. Three years. And then why not leave?

Whitney: Because I opened my mouth too much. Yeah. I raised issues that were very common issues of the females that were playing, and they didn't like that. It was kind of the, the mindset of just put your head down, do what we say, and everything will be okay. But if you don't, then I was basically told that I was no longer welcome back. Yeah. Yeah.

Erica: Yeah. Play by my rules if you wanna play. If you Exactly. That you love that the other half of population can just go out and do it anywhere, anytime. No problem. But

Whitney: For sure. Yeah. You have to

Erica: do it under my conditions. Right.

Whitney: A woman. Yeah.

Erica: Bananas. Okay. So wow. I mean, that's just if that doesn't bring to light, like, the issues that we have in today's to society. Now is this football league still around?

Whitney: It is. Yeah. It's in a way evolved, in a way has not. Like, when I played, we were aired on TV, which is super cool. Now they don't the uniforms are different. There's more coverage with the uniforms. K. I think they wear, like, tights now, maybe more of, like, a sports bra. But I think they've they've burned a lot of bridges with people that they need to work with in order to to run the league.

Erica: Well and I would think too the more that we as a society evolve and say that those things are not okay. Right? And the more that people who have children with women and girls who want to play, they're going, yeah. You're not gonna play like that, though. Right? Like, we're gonna get a league where you can actually play.

Whitney: Totally. Yeah.

Erica: So I do think society is potentially starting to move that way. But For sure. You and I had for sure talked about this before about how it's like a time clock. Right? Like, we've gotta let a lot of this shit pass through these long standing beliefs that people just the unconscious bias that people have, right, that just sits in their brain and they don't even realize.

Whitney: Right.

Erica: Do you think that there's any other way to move that along faster?

Whitney: I mean, I think the problem is is people always like to compare. Like, well, women could never play football with men. Well, yeah, of course. We're not saying that. Right? So people's view is why would I watch women play when I can watch men play, and and they're gonna play better?

Erica: Yeah.

Whitney: Right? So and, of course, I would love to be here and say, like, yeah. I'm just as good as a man. I could play with men. I can't. Right. Right? And that's just the truth of it.

Erica: Yeah.

Whitney: But I I think that it's a different game. Right? I think women's minds work different. I think you you can't go into it expecting to see the same thing because it's not going to be the same. Right? I think it's the same with women's sports across the board. Right? Yeah. There's people who enjoy watching women's basketball better because it's played differently. It's more methodical, and people enjoy that. Right? But it's it's not gonna be the same game. And some people are just never going to see it that way. It's always just gonna be, well, they're not as good. And that's the end of it. Right?

Erica: Yeah. It's different, though. Right? It's different. I love that point. Yeah. I love that point because to be very transparent, I never really thought about it as being different. I just thought about it as men's and women's.

Whitney: Right. Yeah. So I do think so now it makes

Erica: me wanna go and watch a women's basketball game and then, like, flip it right over to a men's to look for the comparisons and and the differences. Yeah. For sure.

Whitney: Yeah. I mean, I think women's brands are more in the team sense. I think a lot of the guys, it's like, they wanna be the star. Right? And I think you can see that a lot. It's I don't know. I just I personally think it's different. And I think if people aren't willing to see that, then it's never really going to to change.

Erica: Which and, of course, all this conversation leads me to women's soccer. Right? Because that's been, like, the buzzword in in the news because of the inequities in the pay. Right?

Whitney: And, like Right. Yeah.

Erica: Killing the game, and they really kind of took a stand and said, we're not gonna stand for this crap anymore. Like, we are

Whitney: Really. Yeah.

Erica: More money for you guys. We are having more viewers. We are more talented. Why are you not paying up accordingly?

Whitney: Yep. And I think, hopefully, that really steamrolls for women's sports in general. Right? And if for a reason to people to stop and look and say, like, you know, where are these inequities at? Right? Because it's not just in soccer. Right? But there there needs to be a reason to stop and look at it.

Erica: Yeah. They the soccer team, I think, really made it black and white because they were able to point to some very tangible financial dollars, which really made the decision

Whitney: for

Erica: a lot of people. But you're absolutely right. It's in every sport.

Whitney: Totally.

Erica: Yeah. So tell me about being a woman in the police department. How how is that?

Whitney: It's it's interesting. I think one of the biggest things, obviously, after we after we chatted, I I thought about it. And I think the biggest thing is that when women come into policing, other things as well, but for the point of speaking, I think we already come in kind of under the gun. Right? A lot of people still don't believe that we belong there. So I think the biggest thing is that I personally, and I know there's other women that I work with, feel like we need to be good all of the time. Mhmm. Right? There's really there's not a lot of room for error because we're already under the scope. Right? It's constantly proving that we belong there. We can do the job. And when a guy on the job does something that isn't great or isn't the best, it's he personally can't do it or he's not great at it. But when we do something, it's women can't do it. Mhmm. It becomes very broad. It's not it's not personal. It's about all of you.

Erica: Right.

Whitney: So I think it puts a lot of pressure on being perfect all of the time because you already know that everyone's paying attention.

Erica: And that you are being held responsible for the entire gender.

Whitney: Yes. Exactly. I mean, that's a big weight. Yeah.

Erica: Wow. I love that you put it that way because I've actually never kinda thought about it in that aspect, but I think that's true in a lot of places as well. Any place where For sure. That women, quote, unquote, don't belong, one little slip up, one little mess up that need to be perfect to prove that we can belong every day. Totally. Whereas a a man can screw up, oh, we'll figure it out. Right? We'll figure it out.

Whitney: Yeah. Yeah. For sure. Yeah. Not a big deal. Right. And there's an expectation with I don't know. I think I think it's funny because I think people want it both ways. It's like you need to be tough. You need to be not emotional. You need to be all of these things that are considered very general based. But then we're also expected to be the people that deal with certain things because we are those. Mhmm. Right? It's like, oh, we need when it comes to more communication and speaking, it's like, oh, well, we'll get a female. Yeah. Because they're better at that. But it's only when it serves you. Right. It's like we have to pick and choose when we can be these certain things.

Erica: Right.

Whitney: So if we're we're those things and what you consider the wrong situation, then we're too soft.

Erica: So it's interesting because I was having a conversation earlier about this, and she called it code switching. Right? So constantly having to switch how she wants to be portrayed or how she needs to act based upon which situation serves

Whitney: her time. Exactly.

Erica: And then she did that for years to make it work as a female, and she was talking about corporate America. Right? But it app Right. Applies here where it's like, okay. They need someone right here who's a solid communicator or a female is gonna have a better touch or a softer touch or

Whitney: whatever. Exactly.

Erica: Let's go ahead and plug Whitney in over here. It's great to have Whitney on board.

Whitney: Yep. Exactly. Yeah. And, I mean, we've we've talked about this before, but the amount of times that, you know, I've had someone tell me that I'm not smiling enough or I don't look like I'm having a good time. And my biggest complaint in that is I have never one time heard someone tell, tell a male coworker of mine that on the job. Because no one expects a male at work as a police officer to be smiling or Right. To make sure that people around him know that he's enjoying his time at work. But for me, it's constant and there's nothing that triggers me more than than that line. Right? Because why do I have to prove to you that I'm happy right now? Right.

Erica: Why isn't that anybody's business but your own?

Whitney: Yeah. Yeah.

Erica: Maybe you are. Maybe you're not. They don't need to do it.

Whitney: I mean yeah.

Erica: So I think that well, like, gosh. I mean, the biggest problem that we're not

Whitney: gonna solve in, like, the hour that

Erica: we have today is how do we make spaces like this more accessible for women? Right? And rather than just allowing the time to pass. And that's something that we have talked about. Right? Like, with each generation, we are growing. We are accepting, but there's still some of those long held beliefs, the unconscious biases. I guarantee right now too, if I went downstairs and asked my husband if he wanted our daughter to be a police officer, he'd probably be like, hell no. But if I said, what about Hudson, my son? He'd probably be like, well, yeah, if he wants to.

Whitney: Totally. Yeah. Yeah. Crazy. I mean, I think it's you're just gonna chip away at it. Like I work with a male partner. He's wonderful. We have a great relationship. He is my probably number one fan on the job, but we often have conversations. And all the time he's like, but I never thought about that. Never thought about it that way. Or when I point out to him that when we are having a conversation with someone, even if I'm talking, people's eyes are on him. And until I say that, he doesn't even notice it. Right? So I think it's taking the opportunities to point these things out and it's slowly people have perceptions that they don't even realize they have. Right? And it's kind of just ingrained in us and we just react and act in a certain way. And until they have a reason to start thinking about things.

Erica: Yeah.

Whitney: Doesn't really change. Just to have someone to say, like, look. Like, this is what happens. This is the stuff that we go through. This is how people respond to us. Yeah. Just little by little.

Erica: Yeah. We do or I do a lot of discussions with people in my workplace, and and the biggest thing that I impress upon people when they come to me because they've been offended is, did you tell that person,

Whitney: like, what they did Right.

Erica: What they said was offensive? I said, because I am a firm believer in, like, let's believe the best in people. You may not believe that way because of what you do, but you may be like, we're going straight. But I always tell him, like, let's let's believe the best in people first because they may have absolutely no idea that what they just said was offensive or that what they said or did was exclusive. Right? So, like, bring that awareness. Now if you bring the awareness and they have a kind of response where they don't care, then, yes, let's have another discussion. But

Whitney: it Yeah.

Erica: Gotta bring it to people's awareness that, like, hey. What you said wasn't cool. Here's how it kind of excluded all of the the female gender.

Whitney: For sure.

Erica: And then they're like, usually, oh, shit. Like, my bad. That was not my intention. So and just like your partner said, like, wow. I didn't even realize it. Yeah. To them. Do you find that now that you

Whitney: I mean, I think you

Erica: Sorry. Go ahead. I was just gonna say I

Whitney: think I lost it.

Erica: I was gonna say, now that you brought that to your partner's awareness about the people looking more to him even when you're speaking, does he tend to redirect them sometimes? They're like, why are you looking at me? Like, I'm not talking? Or Oh, absolutely.

Whitney: Yeah. For sure. Yeah. It's very helpful. Yeah. I think you just just back to what we were saying, you have to be okay with saying saying those things and and bringing it up. Right? Because for a lot of people, it's it's it's uncomfortable. Right? Calling people out can be uncomfortable. But if you don't, then it just gets swept under the rug, and it's just becomes normal.

Erica: For generations and generations and generations.

Whitney: Yeah. And then I've had comments where people will say, like, of course, Whitney has something to say. Right? But it's because things are constantly coming up, and that'll be maybe how you're perceived is you just always have something to say, which is fine with me. Yeah. Right? If I have to fight that fight every day, then so be it. Because it doesn't feel good to just let it go. I can't just let it go. Right? Because once I bring it to light, I'm like, well, at least they now know. They know how I feel. How they take that is on them.

Erica: Yeah. So let me ask you this, because I think a lot of people probably struggle with being uncomfortable and saying the things. How do you find the confidence to speak up? I don't mind natural.

Whitney: I don't mind being perceived that way. No. I've always just been like, I know I'm a certain way. Some people do not like it, and those won't be my people. Yeah. And that's okay. I I I really I know people that are close to me would say that, like, I don't care what people think. I truly don't. Because those people that aren't gonna handle it well, I don't really want them around me anyway. Right? Of course, I'm going to have to be around those people. Right? You work with people, you're around people. But for me, that doesn't, it doesn't feel good to be a way that doesn't feel natural. So I'm just going to be me. I'm going to say, call people out on things that I don't think are right. And if they don't like that about me, then that's okay. And the people that do, those become my people and the people that I wanna be around.

Erica: Yeah.

Whitney: So I understand the people that aren't that way because I think as humans, we all wanna be accepted and liked, but how important is is that if that's not truly

Erica: Yeah. You. Well, I think once you accept very much what you said that, like, if these people don't like that, they're not my kind of people. Like, once you can get to that point I mean, there's I don't know how many people there are in a world. There's a shit ton. And they're not all gonna like you. No. Even they're not all gonna be like you, and that's what makes the world so great, but that's also what makes it challenging. Right?

Whitney: But Right. For sure.

Erica: I do think that that is when I talk with women, when I coach women, that is one of the sticky floors that that we work very hard through, which is what other people think of me as none of my business.

Whitney: Yeah. Of course.

Erica: And to have the confidence and be okay being uncomfortable. Be, being okay being the change agent. Right? The person to get out there ahead of what is acceptable in society to say, yeah. That wasn't a cool statement, or how about you look at me instead? I'm talking.

Whitney: For sure.

Erica: Yeah. So it's definitely if I could flip a magic a magic switch and solve some problems, that would be probably the first one. To everyone is to accept who you are, own it, and be okay being uncomfortable. So what other sticky floors or sticky floor stories do you have from your story of kind of going against this grain of society norms? Any that pop into your head?

Whitney: I think the unknown Yeah. Because I've never been great in new situations. Like, I am definitely very much, like, I wanna know what to expect. I wanna know what's gonna happen when I get there. And if that's not the case, not saying I won't do it, but it definitely takes me a long time. So it's like, if I haven't done it when I was young, it was like, no problem. Trying new things, all of this. And then as I got older, it was like I felt like I needed to be prepared for everything.

Erica: Yeah.

Whitney: So when I when I joined policing, I was when I went through academy, I think I was 32 or 33. Mhmm. And that's old. In in the realm of starting that career, a lot of people, I was they were ten years younger than me. They were in a totally different situation in their life. Right? And before I made that decision to do that, I was in the space of like, what am I going to do? Like, I'm in my thirties. Yeah. I'm not in a career, and it felt I already felt like it was too late. I went through this period where I was like, it's too late. What am I going to do? But it's funny because I'll I'll I'll always remember my dad always would say, people always say life is short, but life is actually long. And I was looking at it like it's too late. I don't have a lot of time. But in reality, like I could work for the next thirty years. Right? So I think my biggest advice is there's a lot there's more time than you think. Yeah. And there's people that have the perception of I do of this fear of the unknown. And then there's the people that have this confidence and they're just like they just go into it and they're like, I'll figure it out. And we perceive those people as they go through shit together and they know exactly what they're doing. But it's really just them being like, I don't care. I'll figure it out. Yeah. Right? So I think it's just realizing that everyone's kind of in the same boat. I know it's been said a million times, but no one really knows what they're doing. Right? It's just the difference in the confidence and being okay that you're not going to know everything or you might not be the best right away.

Erica: Yeah.

Whitney: But you just kinda gotta do it. And once I did, don't get me wrong, it was hard to start. But then I was like, alright. Like, I'm not too old to be here. I can figure it out.

Erica: One time I heard the the saying, the time's gonna pass anyways. Right? So, like, when you're thinking about, like, well, it's gonna take me four years to get a degree. Like, oh my god. Four years. And it's like, well, guess what? Like, if you start today, yeah, you're gonna wake up in four years and have a degree. But if you don't, you're gonna wake up in four years, and you're still not gonna have this degree. So

Whitney: Exactly. Yes. I love that.

Erica: And that's kinda changed my approach to when I look at things of, like, how do you get things done? Right? Or I Right. Other successful people who I I don't know, have have it all, air quote. Right? And it's like Yeah. Take twenty years to do that. And it's like, well, the day is gonna pass anyway.

Whitney: Exactly. Yeah.

Erica: Might as well get after it. But For sure. Now, Whitney, what would you tell the Whitney from years and years and years ago who would show up to the wrestling match and essentially win all of her matches because nobody would play her? You're out of bed. Yeah. What what advice would you give her knowing everything that now?

Whitney: I would probably tell her that it's going to be it's not going to be easy.

Erica: Yeah.

Whitney: Right? This is gonna be, unfortunately, something that you deal with for forever. Right? Probably for my lifetime in a way, this is gonna be something that you deal with or you struggle with. But if you don't push back and you're not the one that you can't expect other people to do that fight for you. Right? So keep putting yourself out there. Keep fighting back. Because at the end of the day, even if it's hard, you're you're still getting to do it. Right? Because if not, then you just start become something that's easy rather than doing something that you enjoy.

Erica: Yeah. I think two are really key piece to remember because I do think, right, like, in our lifetime, this is not gonna be a problem that's solved. It's not gonna be eradicated. I mean No. It's ridiculous. But every day, we can make little like you said at the very beginning, chipping away at it. Right? And if we can get it just a little bit forward, a little bit more progressive, right, then we're seeing some sort of progress and some sort of traction.

Whitney: Absolutely. Yeah.

Erica: Yeah. And while it may be frustrating that it's not gonna be a complete switch, it's not gonna all of a sudden be fixed overnight, then it might be for generations down the road where little girls can wake up and go play competitive football at all of the levels.

Whitney: Absolutely. Yeah. I mean, it's already happening. They're they have Yeah. Flag football programs and colleges now. I mean, that's huge. Right? I mean, you look back, like, it's it's really not that long ago that that was would have been absolutely unheard of. Yep. And the numbers that they have, Right? I just wonder, would they did they expect the turnout that they got? Right? Did anyone even realize that there was so many females that would be interested in playing such a thing? Probably not. No. So even just seeing that, it's like, okay. Well, what what else is there? Right? There are so many things that have been so gendered that it wasn't even a thought. Oh, but now it's like, wait. Like, why should only boys want to play this? And it it doesn't have to be I think it's cool that it's just there's a lot of these things now that are just for women. Football was a boy sport. We're not saying that the girls have to play with the boys. Right? Because we all can recognize it. That's not gonna be I don't need to

Erica: be tackled by a three hundred pound lineman.

Whitney: Yeah. But there's nothing to say that we can't all we can't do that together. Right? Absolutely. So I think it's awesome, and I think my my hope is that it doesn't stop there.

Erica: Yeah.

Whitney: Right? That we can recognize it. There's a lot of space for everybody.

Erica: Yep. I like that. I liked it. That whole entire thought process. There's a lot of space. When I was a kid, I remember so I grew up in Florida in SEC football territory in Gainesville, Florida, like, where the University of Florida is. I grew up on every single Florida football game. Hands down was my favorite thing ever. And I wanted to be the first, like, female Steve Spurrier who is, like, the first I was like, I'm gonna be Steve Spurrier. And then I was like, well, how Yeah. I'm gonna do that. I'm never gonna play. Right?

Whitney: Like, there's no Right. Yeah.

Erica: And I was like, well, but I could be a coach. I can just boss people around all day. Tell them what to do. But, yeah, luckily, it's not really existed. Now they have female coaches. Now there are female coaches. Not as many as there should be. But

Whitney: No. Yeah. I love that that's happening as well.

Erica: Yeah. Very cool. Well, Whitney, where can people find you besides on the streets of Vancouver fighting crime? Because I don't think people wanna run into you there. If they love your story, it resonates with them, how can they get in touch with you?

Whitney: The best place would probably would be Instagram. That's probably my most active social media. It's quick wit one.

Erica: Awesome. I will put that in the show notes for anybody who wants to give you a follow. I think your story is a very powerful one. I think there's more people out there that just aren't don't know how to vocalize it or don't know how to talk about it. It is confidently and comfortable as you. So I love that we have your story to share for other women out there like that and can help amplify it. But thank you so much for being here today. I think it was an awesome story, and I loved chatting with you.