POWERGRAMS

12 PROFILE up of people from all over the United States," East said. "It's a great environment to bring up kids. Everybody looks out for everybody else. We're all one big family." When she first learned to shoot a bow, East said it was simply the "next step." Her dad taught her to handle a gun as a lile girl and oen took her along when he went deer hunting. But it wasn't until the early 1990s that she learned to handle a bow. "It's definitely more challenging to hunt with a bow," East said. "The deer has to be closer to you, and you have to fire without him seeing you. The transition from guns to bows allows you to develop your hunting skills and take them to the next level." East's specialty on the competitive range is the crossbow. When she developed fibromyalgia about 10 years ago, she was forced to give up shooting for a time. But then, East was introduced to the crossbow, which is handled like a rifle, making it easier to fire than a traditional bow. Knowing that archery is mostly a man's game, East works hard to get other women to join the sport. She is an ambassador of arcHER, an organization that encourages young girls and women to take up archery. In that role, East oen visits aer-school archery programs where she coaches girls to improve their skills. She takes photos of girls and women competing on the range for arcHER's website and Facebook page. East competes against men and women. Her goal is to show the world that women can bowhunt as well as men. "I'm constantly having to prove that I can do it, too, and that I am strong enough and capable enough," East said. "I have to push myself harder and remind myself that I am shooting against men who have done this a lot longer than I have. My personal goal is to continue to improve and share my love of archery." East spends leisure time teaching girls and women in the arcHER program.

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