Keynote Speaker » Health & Wellness Speaker
Shonda Schilling
Shonda will be holding a "Book Signing" for her New York Times Best Seller: "The Best Kind of Different".
Shonda Schilling, wife of retired Major League Baseball Player Curt Schilling, shares the painful and joyous story of her son Grant’s struggle with Asperger’s Syndrome, how it changed the lives of her and her husband, and what other parents can learn about this increasingly common diagnosis.
Biography - Personal Life
Shonda Schilling (born November 23, 1967 in Dundalk, Maryland) is founder of the Shade Foundation of America. She is married to professional baseball player Curt Schilling.
Shonda graduated from Towson State College majoring in journalism, member of the Iota Delta chapter of Zeta Tau Alpha. She worked in television production for Home Team Sports in Baltimore until marrying Curt Schilling in 1992. They have four children: Gehrig (5/27/95); Gabriella (5/22/97); Grant (10/13/99); and Garrison (6/27/02). The family resides in Medfield, Massachusetts.
Skin Cancer
Schilling was diagnosed with stage 2 malignant melanoma in February 2001. A total of five surgeries left 25 scars crisscrossing her back, arms, legs and chest. The media picked up on her skin cancer scare during the 2001 World Series, when her husband Curt won the World Series co-MVP honor for the Arizona Diamondbacks. Her story was featured in People Magazine, Glamour, Family Circle, Pregnancy, Good Housekeeping and ABC's "The View." Shonda invited Good Morning America into the operating room to witness her fifth and final surgery in order to inspire others to have their skin checked and to alter their sun habits. In 2002, she accepted the Melanoma Monday national spokeswoman role with the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD). An overwhelming response from fellow melanoma survivors resulted in Shonda creating the Shade Foundation of America.
Shade Foundation of America
Shonda Schilling founded the Shade Foundation of America in 2002 with the goal of changing society's attitude towards sun exposure. The wife of major league baseball pitcher Curt Schilling, she has traveled all over the United States promoting sun-safety awareness.
