It’s the inaugural edition of TALL District’s ‘Talented Talls’ blog series. A blog series about a group of Tall women, men and teens with diverse backgrounds, professions and life experiences.
As a Tall person we often get the question do you or did you play basketball? Well, in Chantelle (pronounced Shawn-tell) Anderson‘s case she not only played basketball, she dominated the game as an all American 6’6″ center, 2,604 points scoring, 65.1% field goal making, 19.6 rebound averaging, jersey retiring powerhouse collegiate player at Vanderbilt University. Her jersey is one of only 4 jerseys retired at Vanderbilt University (two men, two women) and she is the all time leading scorer at Vanderbilt.
Chantelle went on to play professional basketball with WNBA teams Sacramento Monarchs, San Antonio Silver Stars and Atlanta Dream. She also played overseas during the WNBA offseason in Hungary, France, Turkey and Lebanon before retiring due to injuries. Upon retirement Chantelle, often called Chan (pronounced Shawn) has performed the duties of color analyst, coach, model and her current role as account manager for a medical device company. Above all stats she is a God-fearing and faithful woman. A woman I am blessed to know. It was no accident that we met during a Height Goddess photo shoot.
Height Goddess Photo Shoot
Height Goddess Photo Shoot & Taping of “Conversations with Height Goddess Tallistas’
This is what happens when the tent is not tall enough.
Chantelle and I before heading out to the Height Goddess photo shoot
Q&A with Chantelle Anderson & TALL District:
Chantelle’s TALL Facts in her own word’s:
ORIGIN:
Hometown
I was born in Loma Linda, California but raised in Vancouver, Washington. Not Canada. It’s near Portland, Oregon 🙂
Current City
H-Town baby! Lol.
Alma Mater
High School = Hudson’s Bay High School. Go Eagles!
College = Vanderbilt University. Go ‘Dores!
Age
A lady never tells… I’m playin’, lol. 33
A lady never tells… I’m playin’, lol. 33
Shoe Size
12.Sometimes 13 if the shoes run small or narrow.
Height
6’6″
6’6″
Inseam
My pant inseam is 39. Dress length is super long, lol.
-lol, So Chantelle is probably between a 65″ to 71″ inseam in dresses.
HEIGHT SOURCE:
What side of your family did you get your height from?
My Daddy. He’s 6’5″. My Mom is only 5’4″.
Are all of your siblings Tall?
One of my sisters is 6’0″ tall. The other two are short.
Were you always Tall or did you have a noticeable growth spurt? How did it impact your life? I was always tall. But I grew from 6’0″ to 6’4″ between the beginning of 8th grade and the beginning of 9th grade. Knees were on FIRE!
It made me more self-conscious and awkward. Also made sports a no-brainer. And I started wearing boys jeans because I couldn’t find girls jeans to fit me.
When did you OWN your height?
It was a gradual process. I probably didn’t completely LOVE being tall until sometime after college. However, basketball helped me start to gradually appreciate it throughout high school and college.
Did your friends or family encourage you to own your height?
Yep! Always.
Is there a specific Tall person you look(ed) up to that encouraged the acceptance and ownership of your height?
Yes, Lisa Leslie. I knew I could be tall, pretty, feminine and athletic at the same time because she was already all of those things. I wanted to be just like her, haha.
–You definitely succeeded, Chantelle. You are all of those things and then some. 🙂
Did you always like your height? If not, why? What did it take to accept it, love it and/or own it? No, I hated it because I was always made fun of, was taller than all the guys and could never fit anything cute. Lol. Basketball gave me a world where I wasn’t so abnormal and it really helped me get comfortable in my own skin. The success I found on the court eventually spilled over to the real world.
–Love this!
INEVITABLE QUESTIONS:
Did you or do you play any sports (high school, collegiate, professional)?
In high school I played basketball, volleyball and track. I played basketball in college, and professionally in the WNBA and Europe.
Are you a model? Have you ever modeled?
I’m not a model but I have modeled. I thinks it’s fun to get all glammed up and take pictures sometimes. 🙂
–and she looks great when doing it.
Note: If you are not a Tall person and you happen to meet a tall person I advise strongly against asking a Tall person you just met if he/she played basketball or if they are a model. There are other more subtle ways to find out if they played basketball. Try any of the following questions such as:
– May I ask what you do for a living?, or
– What line/type of work are you in?
PROFESSION:
Title
Account Manager
Account Manager
Job Description
I sell medical devices to hospitals.What lead you to your profession?
I retired from playing basketball, didn’t really like college coaching but loved recruiting. So sales was the perfect next step. Plus it gave me freedom.
–Freedom is underrated yet greatly significant when it comes to living a balanced life.
I sell medical devices to hospitals.What lead you to your profession?
I retired from playing basketball, didn’t really like college coaching but loved recruiting. So sales was the perfect next step. Plus it gave me freedom.
–Freedom is underrated yet greatly significant when it comes to living a balanced life.
Degree(s)
BA in Human and Organizational Development.
Professional Goals
To be great at everything I do and to go whatever in direction God has planned out for me next.
-Amen to this! God’s guidance is everything.
What do you want people to know about you, think legacy?
When you say legacy, I think funeral, haha. So at my funeral, I would want people to be able to say that I was authentic, caring and used by God 🙂
THE TALL EXPERIENCE:
What are your favorite/annoying or most frequently asked Tall questions and quotes.
Any of the stupid pick-up lines I hear from guys on a daily basis about how they’re thirsty for a tall drink of water, want to climb this tree or post me up. It’s just not funny and I never know how I’m supposed to respond.
Men, a word of advice: Just come up and introduce yourself. Treat a tall woman like she’s normal but special. I hope that makes sense because it totally does in my head. Lol.
Do you find shopping hard or easy?
Difficult but not impossible.
Difficult but not impossible.
What are your favorite stores (shoes, clothes, lifestyle brands, etc)?
Height Goddess for jeans, pants and long dresses. Buckle for jeans. Nordstrom and Nordstrom Rack for shoes and general clothes. And believe it or not, Victoria’s Secret has some really cute dresses in their catalog that fit great.
Height Goddess for jeans, pants and long dresses. Buckle for jeans. Nordstrom and Nordstrom Rack for shoes and general clothes. And believe it or not, Victoria’s Secret has some really cute dresses in their catalog that fit great.
Favorite brand of jeans, shirts, shoes?
I don’t really shop by brands. Whatever I find that fits and is cute is my favorite! 🙂
I don’t really shop by brands. Whatever I find that fits and is cute is my favorite! 🙂
Favorite car (most leg room)? What kind of car do you drive?
I love SUV’s but I’ll never drive one again. Now I drive a Lincoln Zephyr.
I hope you enjoyed and felt inspired after reading the inaugural Talented Tall series entry. Chantelle Anderson is a great person and has become a wonderful friend, whose spirituality inspires me.
TALL Blessings,
J. EnovyYour Go To Source for All Things TALL
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