Donor Assists UNI Athlete On Journey To Paralympics
Imagine opening a Christmas present and being left speechless by the contents inside. That's exactly what happened to Glen and Kris Heims in December.
The Swisher couple are the parents of Jessica Heims, a University of Northern Iowa track and field athlete who is preparing to compete as a member of the United States' Paralympic team later this year.
Heims is the world record-holder in the F64 discus classification. She established the mark with a throw of 35.52 meters at the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Alumni Classic in May of 2019.
Her performance that spring marked the second time in less than a month that Heims had the longest throw in the world. She first recorded an international record of 32.19 meters in the F64 discus in April 2019 while competing at the University of Iowa's Musco Twilight meet in Iowa City (see video below).