GRANVILLE, OH (WCMH) — At Granville Christian Academy, the school nurse is a local celebrity.
Lea Ann Parsley likes to share her story with the students at the school… because these days there’s only a handful who know Miss Parsley’s athletic history.
But when she pulls out the Olympic Silver medal, they listen closely.
Parsley won a silver at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics, competing in the Skeleton competition. She rode her sled at more than 80 miles per hour in one of the most daring Olympic sports. At the time, Parsley worked as a firefighter in Granville.
She was a college basketball player at Marshall and later stumbled upon skeleton on the internet. The sport grabbed her interest immediately.
Parsley stayed with the sport after 2002 Games, serving as the color commentator for NBC’s coverage of the Olympics in Vancouver.
She was also a registered nurse, so making the transition to a school setting in her hometown made sense for Parsley. She says she loves to bring her medal to classrooms to tell kids the story of her achievement and how dedication to a goal can be rewarded.
PHOTOS: Lea Ann Parsley
CESENA , ITALY – JANUARY 20: Lea Ann Parsley of USA during the Womens World Cup Skeleton at Cesana Pariol on January 20, 2005 in Cesana, Italy. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
LAKE PLACID, NEW YORK – NOVEMBER 18: Lea Ann Parsley of the USA slides down the track during the FIBT Women's Skeleton World Cup Race on November 18, 2005 in Lake Placid, New York. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
LAKE PLACID, NY – OCTOBER 14: Lea Ann Parsley, member of the USA Olympic Skeleton Team, streches in the start house before the US team trials at the Verizon Sports Complex in Lake Placid, New York. Parsley, who is also a firefighter, won the silver medal in skeleton at the 2002 Olympics and hopes to be on the podium again in Torino. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
LAKE PLACID, NY – OCTOBER 14: Lea Ann Parsley, member of the USA Olympic Skeleton Team, speaks to teammate Tristan Gale before the US team trials at the Verizon Sports Complex in Lake Placid, New York. Parsley, who is also a firefighter, won the silver medal in skeleton at the 2002 Olympics and hopes to be on the podium again in Torino. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
LAKE PLACID, NY – OCTOBER 14: Lea Ann Parsley, member of the USA Olympic Skeleton Team, trains in Lake Placid, New York. Parsley, who is also a firefighter, won the silver medal in skeleton at the 2002 Olympics and hopes to be on the podium again in Torino. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
LAKE PLACID, NY – OCTOBER 14: Noelle Pikus-Pace, (right) member of the USA Olympic Skeleton Team, listens to the National Anthem with teammate Lea Ann Parsley before the US team trials at the Verizon Sports Complex in Lake Placid, New York. Pikus-Pace, who was the first US women to win the overall World Cup in 2005 and a leading contender to win a gold medal in Torino, sufffered a broken leg in a fluke accident in October. Pikus-Pace has not let her injury stop her. With countless hours of physical therapy and training, she hopes to be recovered in time to race in Torino. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
LAKE PLACID, NY – OCTOBER 12: USA Olympic Skeleton racer, Lea Ann Parsley, who is a volunteer firefighter, watches as firefighter Brad Jaques of the Lake Placid Fire Department greets kids at a Fire Prevention Workshop in Lake Placid training for the 2006 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
LAKE PLACID, NY – OCTOBER 12: USA Olympic Skeleton racer, Lea Ann Parsley, who is a volunteer firefighter, poses for a portrait with Lake Placid firefighters (from left) Brad Jaques, Todd Bissonette, Matt Colby, and Josh Favro while she was in Lake Placid training for the 2006 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
CALGARY, CANADA – FEBRUARY 21: Lea Ann Parsley of USA during the final of the FIBT 2005 Skeleton Women World Championships on February 21, 2005 at Canada Olympic Park in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
CALGARY, CANADA – FEBRUARY 18: Portrait of Lea-Ann Parsley of the USA in a training run during the FIBT 2005 Skeleton Women's World Championships on February 18, 2005 at Canada Olympic Park in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
CALGARY, CANADA – FEBRUARY 18: Lea-Ann Parsley of USA slows to a stop in a training run during the FIBT 2005 Skeleton Women's World Championships on February 18, 2005 at Canada Olympic Park in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
CALGARY, ALTA, CANADA – FEBRUARY 17: Lea-Ann Parsley of USA in a training run during FIBT 2005 Skeleton Women World Championships at Canada Olympic Park on February 17, 2005 in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
LAKE PLACID, NY – FEBRUARY 10: Lea Ann Parsley of USA Skeleton poses for a portrait February 10, 2005 at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Lake Placid, New York. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)
LAKE PLACID, NY – FEBRUARY 9: Lea Ann Parsley of USA speeds down hill during the Women's skeleton practice session for the Bobsled & Skeleton World Cup on February 9, 2005 at the Verizon Sports Complex in Lake Placid, New York. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)
20 Feb 2002: (L-R) Lea Ann Parsley of the USA, silver, Tristan Gale of the USA, gold, receive their medals in the women's skeleton at the medal awards ceremony at the Olympic Medals Plaza during the Salt Lake City Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, Utah. DIGITAL IMAGE. Florida Florida mandatory Credit: Clive Mason/Getty Images
20 Feb 2002: Lea Ann Parsley of the USA receives her silver medal in the men's skeleton at the medal awards ceremony at the Olympic Medals Plaza during the Salt Lake City Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, Utah. DIGITAL IMAGE. Florida Florida mandatory Credit: Clive Mason/Getty Images
18 Feb 2002: Lea Ann Parsley of the USA practices in the women's skeleton during the Salt Lake City Winter Olympic Games at the Utah Olympic Park in Park City, Utah. DIGITAL IMAGE. Florida Florida mandatory Credit: Mike Hewitt/Getty Images
19 Oct 2001: Lea Ann Parsley of the USA Skeleton Team poses for a USOC Olympic portrait during the Olympic Summit in Salt Lake City, Utah. Florida Florida mandatory Credit: Matthew Stockman /Allsport
17 Feb 2001: Lea Ann Parsley of the USA finishes her run in the Womens Skeleton during the Skeleton World Cup at Utah Olympic Park in Park City, Utah.Florida Florida mandatory Credit: Ezra Shaw /Allsport
