101. Kayla Green: Picking Up the Pieces
The Hog Pod with Bo Mattingly
Sport & Story
4.8 • 1K Ratings
🗓️ 10 March 2021
⏱️ 46 minutes
🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS
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Summary
Kayla Green is the starting catcher for the Razorback softball team and one of Arkansas' top talents—but it was a long road to get here. Growing up with parents struggling with addiction, Kayla's childhood norm was waking up every day not knowing if there would be food to eat. She stepped into a parental role for her two younger siblings before she was even a teenager. And for Kayla, there was only ever one true escape from her reality: softball. When she was 14 years old, her mother was arrested for breaking her parole, and Kayla's long-time softball coach, Brian Jendro and his wife Nicole, decided to take her in. The Jendros provided Kayla with stability and opportunity she never had before, and she was able to achieve her softball dreams—committing to play at Arkansas with a full scholarship. She achieved her goals on the field, but not without learning to heal the scars of her past along the way.Â
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | We drove up to Orange County where my mom was living in a tent in the Orange Grove |
| 0:09.7 | and you know that's when her addiction had kind of hit rock bottom for her like she was giving up on life |
| 0:18.8 | Well, I understand why it was just really tough, but at the same time I think it came to the realization that it was best for me. |
| 0:28.0 | If I wanted to make it anywhere, I needed to leave. |
| 0:40.0 | Welcome into the hog pot. I'm Bo Mattingly and this episode is made possible by our |
| 0:45.2 | friends at First Security Bank, Sarrazan Resort, and Lindsay Golf. |
| 0:49.7 | There's a snap throw down to second and and how about that throw from Kaya Green catching point |
| 0:55.3 | Dexter. Kala Green is a three-year starting catcher for the razorback softball team, |
| 1:00.3 | a leader, and one of Arkansas's top talents. |
| 1:03.0 | But what's most impressive is how Kayla got here, |
| 1:07.0 | growing up with parents who struggled with drug addiction. |
| 1:10.0 | Most kids wake up knowing that they're going to have food on the table in the morning when they're awake and |
| 1:16.1 | I couldn't always, you know, imagine that. Like that was, if we had food on the table and they say |
| 1:20.5 | that was great. If we didn't, okay well that's fine that's |
| 1:23.1 | normal. So just to know that that's normal to not always have a meal ready is |
| 1:29.9 | weird but to me that was just that was life. |
| 1:33.5 | Kayla's life also included softball |
| 1:36.0 | which proved to be a true escape from a difficult childhood. |
| 1:40.5 | Like I don't even know if I would be here still without softball because who knows what path I would have went if I didn't have sports. |
| 1:49.0 | At the age of 14, after her mom was arrested for breaking parole, |
| 1:53.5 | Kayla's long-time softball coach Brian Gendro and his wife Nicole |
| 1:58.0 | decided to take her in. |
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