Kayla Beaudoin

Kayla Beaudoin played five years of varsity basketball at Tamarac High School. She made over 100 three-pointers over that time, scoring over 400 points in her senior season and was twice named a Times Union All-Star. In the classroom, she’s held high honor roll since seventh grade and was a member of the National Honor Society.

All these accomplishments would be impressive for anyone to hold. But they are even more impressive for Beaudoin, who takes medicine twice a day, every day, to control her epilepsy.

Beaudoin had over 40 seizures before finishing the first year of her life. Her parents received her epilepsy diagnosis when she was six months old. That was where the Northeast Epilepsy Foundation stepped in. “The foundation came in and supported my parents really early on,” Beaudoin said. “They were with them every step of the way through all the doctors’ appointments and training.”

Despite the scary diagnosis, Beaudoin said she never felt like she was different from the other kids. “I think everybody has their version of normal, and that was my normal,” she said. “That’s all I knew, and my family supported me through that.”

With her epilepsy under control thanks to medication, doctors assured Beaudoin and her parents that she could do just about anything. “They said the only two things you can’t do are scuba diving and skydiving,” she said. “They basically said the world is yours.”

With the green light from doctors, Beaudoin’s father quickly got her involved in the sport he loved. Since her father is the head girls basketball coach at Tamarac, Beaudoin said she can’t remember not being around the game. “I fell in love with it,” she said. “I love the team atmosphere. I think being a part of something bigger than yourself is so important for us to learn.”

In addition to her love for basketball, volleyball was another sport that captured the young athlete’s heart. “I always say basketball is my first love. But volleyball is my second,” Beaudoin said. “Even though I started later, I immediately fell in love with it. And then, for my freshman year, I got pulled up to varsity, which was a big accomplishment. At the time, our team was very good and we had a lot of seniors involved.”

Just like in basketball, Beaudoin thrived in a team atmosphere on the volleyball court. She was a three-time all-star and served as a captain her senior year. “Kayla possesses remarkable character traits, such as integrity, empathy, resilience, trustworthiness, determination, diligence, perseverance and is a natural leader,” said her father, Tamarac Varsity Girls Basketball coach Ron Beaudoin.

That leadership was also evident outside the gym. Beaudoin and her family have organized Kayla’s Cure Crew, a group that raises money to cure epilepsy. She’s helped organize a team to attend a Walk to End Epilepsy that’s raised over $75,000 towards a cure. These efforts culminated with Beaudoin traveling to Washington, D.C. to meet with federal legislators and advocate for epilepsy awareness and support.

Beaudoin’s exceptional story will continue next year as she joins the SUNY Oneonta basketball program. Even though she’ll be staying close to home, college will still bring some big changes for Beaudoin. The biggest change will be not having her twin sister close by. While Kayla will be just a couple hours from home, her sister will be far away in North Carolina where she’ll be dancing at the collegiate level. The separation is something the twins have never experienced. “We grew up together as friends and as sisters,” Beaudoin said. “We went through classes together, had hard times and good times.”

While competing at SUNY Oneonta, Beaudoin will be studying exercise science on her way to one day becoming a Doctor of Physical Therapy. “Being around sports, unfortunately, comes with injuries. I’ve sprained both of my ankles,” Beaudoin said. “I was interested in the healing process and being able to help people. I know how hard it is to be injured as an athlete.”

Her father believes her journey is only just beginning. “Kayla’s potential is limitless,” he said. “I am confident that she will achieve great things.”