At seventeen, Chelsie Hill was a competitive dancer with her sights set on a career as a professional performer, until a car accident with a drunk driver left her paralyzed and changed everything overnight. Her first question to the doctor wasn't about walking again; it was whether she could still dance. On this episode of She Pivots, Chelsie talks about rebuilding her identity after the accident, the moment she decided to stop waiting for permission to chase her dream, and how she turned her own search for community into the Rollettes, a wheelchair dance team that's grown into one of the largest networks for women and girls with disabilities in the world. From performing in Kelly Clarkson's "Invincible" video to dancing at the opening ceremony of the Paris Paralympics, Chelsie shares how dance became the thing that carried her through the injury, marriage, motherhood, and building a space made for women like her from the ground up.

Chapters:

00:00 Welcome to She Pivots

00:46 Guest Intro: Chelsie Hill

08:48 The Fateful Car Accident

13:54 Adapting to a New Reality

25:06 The Birth of the Rollettes

31:34 Navigating Dance in LA

37:30 Meeting Her Husband

39:10 Navigating Pregnancy With a Spinal Cord Injury

45:00 Building a Community of Disabled Moms

46:36 The Rolettes Experience

47:27 Reflecting on Chelsie's Journey

48:18 Podcast Production Credits

You can follow Chelsie on Instagram @chelsiehill, and the Rollettes at @rollettes_la. 

Check them out at their website www.rollettesdance.com.

Happy National Dance Day, and Happy Spinal Cord Injury Awareness Month!

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She Pivots is a podcast created by host Emily Tisch Sussman to highlight influential women voices, share stories of bold career moves, and inspire women with interviews about career reinvention and how personal pivots can redefine professional success.

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