Fighting Forward : Holding Space with Connor

There’s something sacred about witnessing someone in their truth.

When I sat down with Connor inside SKN Muay Thai in Pittsburgh, I knew I wasn’t just interviewing another athlete—I was meeting a woman who had fought her way back to herself.

Connor’s story is one of rupture and rebuilding. After experiencing betrayal at a previous gym, she stepped away from the sport she loved. Trust—once broken by someone in power—takes time to repair. But what moved me most was not just her return to Muay Thai, but the intention she brought back with her. She wasn’t coming back just to fight. She was coming back to stand taller, speak louder, and be a light for other women navigating their own healing.

She calls this chapter of her life Fighting Forward.

As I listened to her speak, I felt the resonance in my own body. Connor and I come from different backgrounds, but our missions are deeply aligned—we both want to create space where others feel seen, heard, and empowered.

She does this through movement, through presence, through the fierce honesty of her words. And I do it through this project—through storytelling, through images, through the quiet invitation I extend to each person who steps in front of my lens: you are safe here.

Holding space is not about fixing. It’s about witnessing. It’s about saying, “I see you. All of you. And you’re not alone.”

I’m grateful that I got to hold that kind of space for Connor. And I’m even more grateful that she allowed me in.

This project isn’t just about photography or interviews—it’s about remembering the power we hold when we show up for one another, when we share the truth of where we’ve been, and when we choose—despite it all—to keep fighting forward.

— T