June 16, 2008 by jessica.

Hey everyone!!  I know it has been awhile since I last wrote, but boy have we been busy!  We are on our Bound for Beijing Tour traveling all over this beautiful country and are many times in a different city every day.  The last few weeks have been particularly busy because I got the privilege of commentating for ESPN at the Women’s College World series.  It was so exciting to capture the emotions and passion of college softball, I absolutely love doing it.  This year was extra special because John Kruk joined our crew.  I wasn’t sure how it was going to be having a baseball guy doing softball, but he was so unbelievably humble and even though him and I joked back and forth with each other, he had me almost in tears every night because I was laughing so hard.   He also is now a true fan of the sport of softball (how could you not be right?) and went down on the field after the championship game between ASU and Texas A&M to shake the hands of every young woman who participated.  It was such a great time, the only hard part was doing the game at night and training, lifting and running with the USA team by day.  But to be able to have both of those opportunities is such a blessing, so no matter how tiring it might be, you will not be hearing me complain! 

Following the World Series weekend we had a good midterm test of how our team is looking two months out from the Olympics.  We played the National Pro Fastpitch All-Star team, China and Canada.  They were all good games, and although we still have much to work on, it was a positive look into the heart and fight of our team.   

Since then, we have just been on the road, busing from Oklahoma to Kansas to St. Louis to Bloomington.  Tomorrow the other Nike athletes and I are flying to Austin, TX to shoot a Just Do It Nike commercial — exciting stuff, so stay tuned for how it all turns out.  From there we fly back to meet the team in Stevens Point, WI.  Phewwww, I get tired just thinking about it — but that is why we take it all one day at a time!! 

I appreciate all of you that have been checking in and saying hi –  the countdown to Beijing is less than two months away, I AM SO EXCITED!!!!!! Love it, Dream it, Live it!

Jessica Mendoza #2 

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January 13, 2008 by jessica.

Hi all!
Well, we have made it safely back into Europe. I have recieved many emails from you all and realized a majority of you have no idea what this trip was about. It was called a US Goodwill Olympic Tour sponsored by the US military and a group called Pro Sports MVP. They chose five Olympians to go to the Middle East and visit troups to help lift the morale of our troups. The Olympians were Mike Whitmarsh (beach volleyball silver medalist 1996), Shawn Crawford (200 m gold medalist 2004, Beijing gold medal hopeful for 100 and 200 m), Shannon Miller (gymnastics, most decorted in history with 7 medals — 1992 and 1996), and Angel Ruggiero (ice hockey gold, silver and bronze medalist in 2006, 2002, and 1998). What a crew we had!

The goal was to visit as many troops as possible in the time we had, and to try and get out to the most remote areas where troops never get to see anyone. The deeper in we got, the bigger the smiles grew … SO many brave and beautiful people from this great country we live in. I have never had so much pride in being an American than after meeting those men and women who are in the military, listened to their stories, and saw the looks in their eyes as they relived the last few years of their lives.

For all of us, as Oympians who have always taken so much pride in the country we represent, there is a whole new meaning to sacrifice and bearing your country’s flag or name across your chest that I hope all five of us will carry with us on the field, track, beach, gym and rink.

I have an American flag that was given to me off the uniform of a soldier named Josh Knobel from Philadelphia, PA, that is something I will take with me forever. All soldiers bear the American flag on their sleeve, but on the right sleeve it looks backwards. Prior to meeting Josh Knobel in Afghanistan, I had asked Major John Willets back in Qatar why the flag was “backwards”, he responded with “the US never retreats”. We are always progressing. As a military, as a nation, and as a united world to make this world a better and more peaceful place. If you think about what a flag would look like if soldiers were charging at you, versus what it would looks like if they were running away from you, the wind would be blowing it back, and that is where the image of the flag being reversed or backwards comes from. This symbol is everywhere, on planes, on uniforms and once I learned what it meant, as an athlete who also represents this country, I could absolutely relate to what it stood for and loved it: we never give up, and are always trying to get better, not only for ourselves, but for our team. So needless to say, when Josh Knobel from Philly gave me his own “backwards” American flag that has been with him through and seen a lot this last year, it meant more to me than anything else I could have received.

I hope I did not bore you all too much with all of our stories … it has been an amazing, and as you can probably tell, emotional trip that none of us will ever forget. A trip that makes me more happy to come to and call America my home.
Love you all!
Jess

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January 11, 2008 by jessica.

Hey, just wanted to let you all know that you can also get Shannon’s blog and pictures at www.nbcolympics.com (click on Olympians visit troops). Good stuff from her too!

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January 11, 2008 by jessica.

Today I did two things for the first time: flew a plane and shot a gun. Now when I say flew a plane, it was for about two minutes. I of course just had my hands steady wanting to go straight, but then the pilot told me to turn it to the right and this small plane just took off to the side. I thought for sure I had done something wrong, but he assured me we were okay. It was exhilarating controlling such a powerful piece of equipment, and feel the whole plane shift at just the turn of your hand. I know a lot of you think this pilot must be crazy to let me of all people briefly control the plane, and I really can’t argue with you, but I am really glad he did!

When we landed in Sharana (I had to take my hands of the wheel for this part), we were surrounded by a blanket of snow — it was white as far as the eye could see. We then went out to meet a lot of the troops that were stationed amongst the base in different guard stations. The troops there were awesome and very grateful for us making the trip out to their camp because not even mail had been able to reach them since Christmas because of the weather.

Our next mission was out at the range. There were a mix of both US and Polish soldiers that were excited to show us how to shoot. The first gun I got to shoot was an M-4 (machine gun) and very heavy. To be honest, I was scared of it. Every time I shot it seemed to be in control of me instead of me in control of it. I think I hit more of the snow then any target we were aiming at. Then we shot an M-9, which was a smaller handgun. They gave us lessons on stance and technique, and I think I may have failed with flying colors. Shannon Miller was an ace, putting so many holes in her target you couldn’t recognize it by the end. Angela took out more of the lower body on hers, and myself and Mike Whitmarsh combined on the same target with maybe a slight “brush back” or maybe a scratch on the target’s arm. I guess some of us are just not meant to be shooters …

Hope you enjoy some of the pictures. The five of us are having a great time and have developed a great brother-sister relationship. It may have only been a week so far, but because we have been through a lot together it makes us feel like we are family.

Only one more day left until we return!!!
Miss you all!
Jessica

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January 10, 2008 by jessica.

Today was a day of highs and lows. The high was riding in a blackhawk helicopter. This was one of the coolest things I have ever experienced. First of all, just to ride in it, you have to get “rucked up” in ammo vests and helmets. Then to stand next to one is a very powerful experience. They are so loud and different from any other piece of flying equipment I have ever seen. But once you are in, and feel like you are strapped in well enough to go on a serious roller coaster, the copter takes off and you feel absolutely powerless to the movements and control of your own body. They can move so fast, and turn on a dime, sending your stomach flying in the direction you just left. Needless to say, it is absolutely amazing. They also do not get very far off the ground, so our views of eastern Afghanistan were the best we could have ever imagined. We got to soar right above the mud huts that are the locals homes and villages. We were able to see wild camels and other animals. We soared through snow-packed mountains that were so white you wanted to just dip your hand down and grab a big bunch of it. There were also beautiful rivers and cliffs … I truly had no idea how beautiful this land really is. I felt I learned more about the terrain and lifestyle of the Afghani people then I ever could have in stories or books. All of their structures are made of mud and it is unbelievable how they stay warm and survive so far from anyone or anything else. It was also really cool to see the looks of my travelmates (and other Olympians faces) as we flew through the air over this beautiful country. Shawn was going crazy and talking into his video camera, making a crazy little home video, while the rest of us (Shannon, Angela and Mike) just sat there taking it all in. When we would make a crazy turn or drop, we would grab each other for dear life and then smile when we knew it was alright.

As for the low, after we returned to Bagram, we visited a hospital. I don’t think I have ever walked through a room so fast as I did the ICU. Most of the patients in there were local Afghani’s and I do not want to get into details, but I have never seen or imagined injuries like these in my life. It is amazing what our nurses or doctors are doing not only for our own troops, but for the locals as well. We then visited two local Afghani children. The first was a small boy that had been hit with a land mine. He had one of the most beautiful smiles I have ever seen. As soon as we walked in he promptly sat up, shook our hands, and gave us this big toothless grin that just melted my heart. When I got closer to him to say hi, he put his arm around me like we were long-time friends reuniting. The next was a young girl who had fell into a fire and was burned on her lower body. She was so beautiful and eager to meet us and instantly memorize our names. Throughout the rest of our tour through the hospital, I kept sneaking back to her room to test her on her memorization. We would both laugh as she said, “Jess-i-ca.” The I would give her a high five and would communicate through this small interaction of exchanging names and smiles.

A moment that brought all of us to tears was when we visited a US soldier. After we signed some stuff and took a photo with him, he began to cry and said, “I did this for you …we are all here for you.” It was all I needed to let out the emotions of the day, of this whole trip. I just cannot even tell you how much the words bravery, heart and sacrifice have been re-defined here for me.

Only a few more days left, but I am sure there is much more to come …
Love you all,
Jess

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January 9, 2008 by jessica.

Hi everyone!
Well, we made it into Afghanistan, but it has been a long, crazy road. The weather has not been very good to fly in so because of that we have had to land in places we were not originally scheduled to be at. We spent about 20 hours in Kandahar, Afghanistan on a delay. Although we were not supposed to be there at first, I enjoyed spending a lot of time with the soldiers there. The most interesting part of that trip for me was the dining hall. In a strange way, it reminded me of the Olympics because Kandahar has the more than 32 countries stationed there. Countries ranged from USA, Britain, Australia, France, Spain, Estonia, Netherlands, South Africa and many more.

At breakfast I sat with a soldier from England and he shared stories of some of the battles and his thoughts on so many countries in one area. He said it was amazing because they might not all get along or hang out when they are on base, but when they get out there and are fighting, they are like brothers. He said language, cultural, political differences do not matter because of the ultimate goal they all share: to rebuild, educate and create freedom. Although very different, I felt a strong similarity as an Olympic athlete. The feeling of getting so many different countries in one place that get along because of a similar passion and goal. All the issues that exist outside of our arena seem to disappear, and it is that same feeling that I saw in the eyes of this British soldier.

We finally made it out of Kandahar and are now high in the mountains of eastern Afghanistan. The backdrop is beautiful here. I never imagined Afghanistan could look do beautiful. I guess I pictured a land of desert. Well being this high up, I quickly learned meant a lot of snow. We got 4 feet of snow in the 15 hours we landed here, and have not been able to get out. But what looked like a pretty bad day from the beginning (up at 4 am to find out our flight out is cancelled for the day) ended up being our best day yet. We were able to meet with more troops today and really learned a lot. I talked with a young soldier this morning and he told me about what they are doing with the locals: teaching them how to fight, rebuilding schools for the children and educating the women who were never allowed to go to school. He said it is very hard because you can not tell the difference between the enemy and the locals, so although there is a lot of risk, it is worth it when they are able to leave each town better than when they arrived.

We also had meetings with high ranking officials: Colonel Ives and two-star General Rodriguez. Colonel Ives was amazing, he talked about how there are two kinds of missions here in Afghanistan: kinetic, which is killing and fighting, and non-kinetic, which is shaking hands and building relationships to help. He said that the goal is to only have the non-kinetic relationships because when they kill locals, they are replaced just as fast (50% of the population is under the age of 15), and with that much more vengeance. But when they build a relationship, provide jobs and education, it helps the country rebuild and become that much stronger against the Taliban and any other enemies. He had so much information of what is happening here that I invited him to join us for dinner. Everyone thought I was crazy because a Colonel is too busy to have dinner with us, but he agreed. He switched around his meetings so that he could meet us in the cafeteria and it was great to have him join us and share all that is happening around us. When we met the two star General, who is the highest ranked official in this area, Shannon Miller got him to do a handstand in his office — it was hilarious!!

We also spent a part of the day with the air force and got to get up close and personal with the F15’s and the A10 warthogs. You can just feel the power they possess, and it was interesting to hear the stories of the pilots of exactly what these planes are and have been doing. Pretty sure I can’t write about it, but it is some of the highest tech weaponry I have ever heard of, nonetheless seen. We capped off our evening (and a very long day) with a two and half hour autograph session with many, many soldiers. So many smiling faces, with sad stories behind them. But they all still want to get out there and help, and make this world a better place. The people here are so beautiful, and despite the weather conditions around us, the warmth and passion of their hearts is the best part of being here.

If weather permits, we are out of here very soon, and are on to even a more intense area. To be honest, the further we get in, the more I want to shake the hands of those who are there and thank them for sacrificing so much.
Love you all — I feel so far from home!!!
Jess

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January 6, 2008 by jessica.

Hey everyone!Just wanted to check in with everyone, let you know I made it to the middle east safely and tell you about my first two days here. Well, the first day (after A LOT of flying) we arrived in the small country of Qatar. It is on the Persian Gulf bordering both Kuwait and Saudia Arabia. We were told this is a wealthy country because they are the second largest country in the world producing natural gas. Because of this, the base camp where we are staying, Camp As Sayliyah, is a place for relaxation for many of the troops to come to from Iraq and Afghanistan. It is very interesting, they make a HUGE effort to make this camp feel like home. From the outside, all you see are a block of buildings that look identical and boring, but on the inside there are restaurants and bars, a bowling alley, a gym and even a swimming pool. Every so often troops from Iraq and Afghanistan (and many other countries in the area) get to have a “four day pass” where they come here, do not have to wear their uniforms or set their alarm clock, and most importantly they can get away from the “fireworks” that surround their lives. We were told not to get used to how nice it is here because where we are going (and most other camps) are not like this at all. But it is has been a nice introduction to the middle east before heading further in.I have really enjoyed listening and getting to know many of the soldiers who are here. I do have to say that as hard as it has been for many of them, the hardest part of all seems to be how long they have been away from home. Especially coming off of the holidays, just us being here and talking about home puts some nostalgic smiles across their faces. Today we did an autograph session for a few hours and met a lot of men and women who are leaving to go back to Iraq tonight. I had a conversation with one young woman (who is a softball player by the way!), and she has been stationed with Iraq civilians to teach them how to fly fighter planes for the past six months. She has to live with Iraqi families, moving around quite a bit, learn the language and eat the food. I thought it was so interesting how young she is and what she has been stationed to do, but is helping the locals and learning more about the culture of the area than many of the people who have been stationed on base for years.After the autographs, we played a volleyball match versus all of the soldiers. We had an Olympic beach volleyball player (Mike Whitmarsh at 6′7), an Olympic gold medal track and field star (Shawn Crawford) an Olympic gymnast (Shannon Miller - at 5′1 might I add, she was out setter) and a three-time Olympic hockey player (Angela Ruggiero). It was pretty ugly at first, but we put it together (our competitiveness really kicking in) and pulled out some good come-from-behind wins. I have had a good time getting to know the other Olympians, their backgrounds, and even their workout regiments (Shawn killed me on an ab workout this morning).Not sure where we are off to next, but we are outta the “vacation zone” for the next week, and from what we are told, things are going to get a lot more interesting. Stay tuned for more updates. I miss you all and am so proud to call America my home …Love you all!!Jess

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November 9, 2007 by jessica.

BAWSI (Bay Area Women’s Sports Initiative)

Pictured above: Brandi Chastain (USA Soccer Gold Medalist).

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October 11, 2007 by jessica.

Hey all! What an exciting last few weeks!! The last month after our USA season has been all about the Olympic tryouts that took place in Chula Vista, CA this last week. You would think after being on a national team since 2001, I would be used to tryouts by now. Well, when you are talking about your dreams, the nerves come out in full force! Good news is, the team has been announce and I am going to Beijing!!! I am SOOOOO EXCITED!!!

After tryouts, Stacey Nuveman and I flew straight to Clearwater Florida where we put on the first “official” Nuveman/Mendoza Clinic Experience. We did it at the Fastpitch Learning Academy, which was a perfect facility, and felt we really took doing clinics to a whole new level. For us, it is more than just the softball skills we teach, but our goal is for each girl to walk away as a better person as well — so we incorporate a lot of life skills into our “evening sessions.” Really fun and emotionally charged stuff to say the least — our favorite part of the whole clinic!!

Next I was off straight to Boston for an event with the Boston Girls Sports Coalition at Fenway Park. I have never been to Fenway, and no matter what team you are a fan of, this was one of the best and most historical parks I have ever seen. I was given a special tour before the event started, and it was neat to walk the field, stands and the Green Monster (what they have nicknamed the left field wall). It is the oldest park in baseball and you can feel the history of the game that has been played there. Really cool stuff. I also did some sightseeing of downtown Boston: walked along the Charles River, had some authentic Italian cannoli’s in the north end, had the best New England clam “chowda” at the original Cheers restaurant, strolled through the Boston Commons and Beacon Hill, and even made a trip over to Harvard to see some friends. Boston is a beautiful city and I was very happy to take a couple of days to see the sights.

Next I am off to Stanford University for Reunion Weekend and the softball alumni game and then to NYC for the Women’s Sports Foundation Annual Salute to Women in Sport. I am sure there will be many more pictures and stories to share!!!
Until then,
Love it! Dream it! Live it!
Jessica #2

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August 10, 2007 by jessica.

What a summer it has been with USA softball!! Our season started back in June and we have been on the road for six weeks straight!! We are now ending our trip with the Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. As far as competition, most of our games were rained out (including the championship). But as luck would have it, as soon as competition ended, the sun came out and it has been beautiful. Our first day out sightseeing we went to see the statue of Christ the Redeemer. First of all, this is now one of the infamous newly-announced seven wonders of the world. And I could see exactly why. The statue sits atop one of the mountains (Corcovado) in the area that overlooks all of Rio de Janeiro. The statue stands at 130 feet — which is absolutley mouth-opening when you take the train up and your eyes first see it. Pretty powerful stuff, and I can see why this statue has become a true symbol of the city.

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