A FAMILY wish has triggered a prominent pathway for budding Salamander Bay snowboarder Nate Hodgson.
The 12-year-old Tomaree High School boy developed a love for the snow back in 2019 after elder sister Kaylee was diagnosed with cancer at the age of eight.
Her ‘Grant-A-Wish’ was to see and play in snow for the first time and when the Hodgson family ventured down to Jindabyne to realise Kaylee’s dream, a young Nate became ‘hooked.’
Showing a fierce determination and fighting spirit, brave Kaylee recovered from her cancer scare and is now a thriving teenager while athletic Nate has blossomed into an elite snowboarder with the potential to go a long way.
His all-round sporting prowess shone through like a beacon last year with the talented Hodgson stamping his mark across five different disciplines.
“I enjoy competing in a variety of sports, but have worked hard on my snowboarding routine in recent years,” a dedicated Hodgson told News Of The Area.
Nate represented Tomaree High School at Regional swimming in the 50m and 100m freestyle; cross country over 5km; track athletics in the 400m and 1500m.
He also competed at the Northern NSW and NSW/ACT Inter Schools Snowboarding Championships.
“Hopefully I can qualify for more snowboarding competitions this year and improve my technique and style” exclaimed the former Soldiers Point Public School captain.
A promising rover, he lined up for the Port Stephens OzTag junior representative squad and showed his wares on the touch football field.
For his sterling efforts, Nate received a Tomaree High Excellence in Sport Year 7 Class Champion Award at the school’s end-of-year Awards ceremony.
By Chris KARAS
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