2008 Woodie Awards
Molly Kinder : THE IRISH GUARDSWOMAN
Amanda Michaels
Issue date: 2/18/04 Section: Diversity at Notre Dame
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Before Molly Kinder left home for her freshman year at Notre Dame, her mother alerted her to the presence of a group of extremely tall men on campus called the Irish Guard - clearly steering her 6-foot-2 daughter to a pool of suitable SYR dates. Weeks later, when Kinder watched the kilted Guardsmen march proudly across the field at her first football game as a student, it was love at first sight - but not the kind her mother expected.
In that moment, unaware of the incredible struggle her decision would bring, she realized she did not want to date a Guardsman. She wanted to become one.
Three years later, with many hurdles behind her and more ahead, she marched out onto the field as the first and only female member of the Guard.
Her long journey started at the beginning of her junior year when, after a summer of rigorous physical preparation, she did not make the final cut for the 1999 Guard. She did, however, manage to integrate herself into a group originally "shocked" by her appearance, and, not dissuaded in the least, Kinder vowed to earn a spot on the Guard the following year.
While working in Santiago, Chile the following summer, Kinder practiced her high-knee marching through the busy streets - creating "quite a scene", as she recalls - and kept a picture of the Guard in her backpack to remind her of her goal.
The second audition, Kinder said, was far more comfortable than the first. She "felt a great deal of camaraderie with the aspiring and current Guardsmen." She was confident that, had she performed to the best of her ability, new band director Ken Dye would not overlook her because of her gender.
However, not all were as open-minded as he, as she would learn the night before results were posted. The captain of the Guard, who was told in advance that Kinder was to be chosen, made an unannounced visit to her room to discuss the possibility of her making the group.
"In our nearly two-hour conversation, he firmly laid out the many challenges I might face if I were to be a member of the Irish Guard," she said. "I would later learn from another Guardsman that the talk was motivated by a desire to persuade me not to join the squad."
In that moment, unaware of the incredible struggle her decision would bring, she realized she did not want to date a Guardsman. She wanted to become one.
Three years later, with many hurdles behind her and more ahead, she marched out onto the field as the first and only female member of the Guard.
Her long journey started at the beginning of her junior year when, after a summer of rigorous physical preparation, she did not make the final cut for the 1999 Guard. She did, however, manage to integrate herself into a group originally "shocked" by her appearance, and, not dissuaded in the least, Kinder vowed to earn a spot on the Guard the following year.
While working in Santiago, Chile the following summer, Kinder practiced her high-knee marching through the busy streets - creating "quite a scene", as she recalls - and kept a picture of the Guard in her backpack to remind her of her goal.
The second audition, Kinder said, was far more comfortable than the first. She "felt a great deal of camaraderie with the aspiring and current Guardsmen." She was confident that, had she performed to the best of her ability, new band director Ken Dye would not overlook her because of her gender.
However, not all were as open-minded as he, as she would learn the night before results were posted. The captain of the Guard, who was told in advance that Kinder was to be chosen, made an unannounced visit to her room to discuss the possibility of her making the group.
"In our nearly two-hour conversation, he firmly laid out the many challenges I might face if I were to be a member of the Irish Guard," she said. "I would later learn from another Guardsman that the talk was motivated by a desire to persuade me not to join the squad."