Judy McCrae Warrior Impact Award Winners
Ben Skinner - Women's Rugby
Ben Skinner is an incredible leader on and off the field as a member of the women’s rugby team. On the field, Ben was named a 2021 OUA All-Star leading the Warriors in scoring and was a big part of developing a young and upcoming roster. Off the field, Ben is an independent human rights activist who specifically does work to fight for indigenous and queer rights in all areas. Ben facilitates workshops on racial, gender, and sexuality inclusivity and sensitivity. This year they facilitated a workshop on a CBC National Conversation hosted CAIS Boarding Schools, where they talked about gender inclusivity in private school residences and how to best implement gender-inclusive housing. Ben served on the Balsillie School of International Affairs Anti-Oppression and Equity committee this past year. They are the first indigenous athlete to represent eastern Canada Rugby League. Ben is a co-founder and the current treasurer of Halton Pride Collective, Halton Region's first LGBTQ+ community organization. Ben also played an instrumental role in advising Rugby Canada on transgender inclusion feedback submitted to World Rugby over the last couple years and was passionately involved in the "Ruggers for Trans Inclusivity" movement's #TackleTransphobia campaign.
Christina Ji - Swimming
Christina Ji, a captain of the swim program was an incredibly impactful student-athlete in the pool, in the classroom and in the community this past season. Ji came away with an OUA bronze medal at the 2022 OUA Championship in the 200 Medley Relay and qualified for three events at the U SPORTS Championship including the 50 and 100 breaststroke and 100 back. In the classroom, Ji was an exception student earning a 91.4% average over the past two terms studying Biomedical Engineering. Outside of swimming, she is a member of a Community Group at Slate Church in Waterloo that does a lot of work around the local community. Some examples include helping the Food Bank of Waterloo Region sort food donations on a monthly basis, preparing meals for those living at a homeless shelter called A Better Tent City. She recently volunteered at Serve Day, a day dedicated to helping groups within the community.
In the Fall, Christina was involved with a partnership between Slate Church and One Roof, a local outreach for youth experiencing homelessness, to help with a painting project. This has been a great way to connect with the youth while simultaneously taking on a meaningful and fulfilling project. During the Christmas season, she helped run a program called Meet the Need where non-perishable food items were collected and donated to a local food bank.
