The Shadow
LOW MOOR — Women’s health will be spotlighted in an upcoming evening of events at the Alleghany Highlands YMCA.
Sponsored by WestRock, the YMCA will host Women’s Health Day on Saturday, March 12, from 5 until 9 p.m. with a plethora of events ranging from candlelight yoga and candlelight chair to shallow water aerobics, and Tai Chi to a women’s empowerment self-defense course and a holistic health seminar. Local health care professionals will be on hand to provide information and help schedule appointments.
Admission is free, while door prizes will be awarded over the course of the evening, and refreshments will be served.
“We thank WestRock for their partnership in this event,” said Michael May, health and wellness director for the YMCA and a personal trainer. “We look forward to an informative and fun-filled evening for women who are interested in their health and improving their overall well-being.”
A highlight of the evening will be two former Alleghany High School classmates reuniting to provide workshops on their various areas of expertise. Brittany Williams will provide insight into self-love and self-confidence, while Holly Keatts will offer a women’s empowerment self-defense class. Both are members of the Alleghany High School Class of 2001.
“It will be fun to work with an old classmate who I actually haven’t seen in forever,” Williams said.
Keatts, the daughter of Alleghany Highlands YMCA CEO Jennifer Unroe, will offer her women’s self-defense course in Jiu-Jitsu, a form of martial arts. This will be the fifth occasion she has offered the seminar at the YMCA.
She has been training in the Jiu-Jitsu discipline since 2018 and was certified as an assistant instructor in July of 2019. She became a fully certified instructor in July 2020. Keatts is certified through Gracie University in Torrence, Calif., where her head instructor is Eve Torrez Gracie, a former WWE diva and first-ever three-time WWE Divas Champion.
Keatts will offer several different self-defense tactics, ranging from boundary settings to being able to disengage a would-be attacker anywhere from a standing position to being on the ground.
“I feel like that area needs more exposure to self-defense and martial arts, especially since attacks in general against women in the U.S. are on the rise,” she said. “This program is important because it shows you how to protect yourself while you’re on the ground. Most self-defense programs are more about defending yourself in a standing position.”
Keatts is a native of Alleghany County and a 2006 graduate of Coastal Carolina University in Conway, S.C. She also works as a travel agent and educational outcomes coordinator for CME Outfitters. She and her husband, Scott, now reside in Midlothian with their two children, Colby and Catherine.
Williams is a 2005 graduate of James Madison University with a degree in business and hospitality along with tourism management. She worked in hotel management at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas from 2005 to 2008 and was instrumental in opening a new spa and wellness center at the world-renowned resort.
In 2008, Williams was crowned Miss United States, representing Nevada in the pageant that was held in Las Vegas. She has enjoyed modeling and speaking on positive body, self-esteem and health. Williams has been back in the area for a while but eventually plans on returning to Las Vegas. Back in the fall, she traveled to Greece, where her boyfriend, Tyler Shelton, played semi-pro basketball. They may return to Greece in late summer.
After leaving the hospitality industry, Williams earned her certification in holistic health from IAWP (International Association of Wellness Professionals) and her personal training certification from NASM (National Academy for Sports Medicine). She has worked with various health and wellness companies such as Hotworx and Planet Beach. She has won six different fitness titles over the course of the last seven years.
At Women’s Health Day, Williams will offer Lessons of a Former Beauty Queen and Fitness Champion: Find your authentic confidence, truly love your whole being from the inside out and be the queen of your life. Winning major titles in pageants and fitness, people assume that confidence and self-love come with the package, but this session talks about how Brittany turned insecurity into authentic self-confidence and radical self-love, and how you can do the same.
Brittany is the daughter of Cathy Williams of Clifton Forge and the late B.C. Williams. Her brother, Bosco, a standout athlete at AHS and later JMU, also recently moved back into the area.
“It’s nice to be back home for a while and be a part of such a wonderful opportunity such as Women’s Health Day,” she said. “Women’s health has been a passion of mine since winning Miss United States. It’s something I enjoy and hope to inspire others.”
Williams is currently booking a few one-on-one holistic health coaching sessions. For more information, visit her website at https://wellness360coach.com/brittany-williams/
In addition to the courses offered by Keatts and Williams, candlelight chair and candlelight yoga will be taught by Susan Hutchison and Tamara Reid, while Charlotte Williamson will offer her Tia Chi course. An exercise in shallow water aerobics will be offered as well by Alysan Raymond.
“We thank everyone who has volunteered their time toward this event,” Unroe said. “Without the work of our volunteers and the assistance from our corporate neighbors, this Women’s Health Day would not be possible.”
The Alleghany Highlands YMCA, since its inception, has provided a variety of youth and family programs and expanded membership and services into all of the Alleghany Highlands communities. For more information on the Alleghany Highlands YMCA, call 962-9622.
