New Lenox woman raising money, awareness for barebow competitions

Chrissie Lyons, 47, didn’t discover barebow archery until 2019, but she’s breaking records and winning medals in national and international competitions and teaching her skills to others.

The New Lenox resident recently represented the U.S. in barebow archery at the 2022 World Games in Birmingham, Alabama. Lyons earned a silver medal, but her win was more significant than the medal.

“She was the first U.S. barebow woman to ever win a medal at World Games,” said Jeff Sanchez, owner of BowDoc in Mokena and Lyons’ coach.

To Lyons, this is tantamount to earning the same at the Olympics, since the Olympics does not offer a barebow archery competition. And she wants to be on top.

“I want more people to have the same experiences I have,” Lyons said. “If I can help others, it’s worth it to me.”

Lyons also is competing for Team USA during the 2022 World Field Championships in October in Yankton, South Dakota, and the 2022 Pan Am Championships in November in Santiago, Chile.

She is raising money through GoFundMe to continue competing.

Lyons teaches archery at the park districts in New Lenox, Frankfort and Mokena through BowDoc Archery in Mokena. She said she also gives private archery lessons and has been approached by homeschoolers for lessons, too.

According to Lyons’ GoFundMe page, she has earned two world records, four national records, state-level records, seven national champion titles and has more than 20 national-level event podium finishes in indoor, outdoor and field archery.

Lyons became a certified USA Archery coach in 2021, Sanchez said.

A barebow ‘anomaly’

New Lenox Mayor Tim Badermann said Lyons will be honored for her accomplishments during the New Lenox Village Board meeting Monday.

“We’re honored that she did so well,” Baldermann said. “We want to recognize her efforts and her success. I’m sure she will be a great inspiration for young athletes.”

Sanchez said he’s been shooting for 45 years, coaching for 30 years and has owned BowDoc for 15 years, with six of those years in its Mokena location – and he’s never encountered anyone like Lyons.

“It’s very definitely an anomaly as far as how much and how quickly she developed,” Sanchez said. “Chrissie works harder than anyone I’ve ever had. So although she had pretty quick success, it’s definitely not a fluke because of how hard she works at it.”

Sanchez said it would take another archer 20 to 30 years to achieve “a fraction” of Lyons’ achievements. He said many people get excited after the first lesson and promise to return. Most don’t, but Lyons did.

“Sure enough, she was in here pretty much every day, practicing and taking lessons,” Sanchez said.

Determined to compete

Lyons said she first tried barebow archery in April 2019, after someone had given her daughter a bow and Lyons scheduled a class for her daughter at BowDoc. Lyons decided to take a class, too, and instantly knew she wanted to devote her life to it.

But then Lyons broke her leg Sept. 11, 2019, and needed a rod and several screws inserted. Lyons said she was devastated. Her archery career had stopped before she ever competed.

Lyons was wrong. Others helped carry her bag and pull her arrows so she could continue training, Lyons said.

“I was competing on a broken leg [during] the first indoor competitive season,” Lyons said in a written statement. “I spent six months learning to walk properly again and was still having issues walking so had an additional surgery to remove some of my screws a month before my first outdoor national champion title and world record in August of 2020.”

Because Lyons is self-funded and does not yet have a sponsor, she’s raising money through GoFundMe.

Lyons said it costs a minimum of $10,000 to $15,000 a year to compete, which isn’t sustainable for her without sponsorships.

A role model for foster children

Lyons isn’t just competing for herself. She’s competing because she wants to raise awareness about barebow archery as a viable sport for women.

She also wants to deliver this message to foster children: Your past does not define your future. You define your future.

These are not idle words.

Lyons is a product of the foster care system. She was just 6 years old when she and several siblings were removed from their home due to severe abuse, she said.

Lyons said she then lived in Lydia Home in Chicago, until her biological father died when she was 10 and an aunt and uncle became her foster parents. She hopes her story inspires and encourages others to find their own passions.

“We can’t control where we come from,” Lyons said. “But, we can control where our path takes us in the future to learn and grow and overcome adversity.”

For information, visit bowdoc.com and worldarchery.sport/profile/33182/christina-lyons.

To donate, visit “Help Chrissie Lyons represent USA Women’s Barebow” at gofund.me/de08c5a4.