Amanda Lynn Mayhew: Breaking Barriers
May 3, 2021
Dictionary.com defines an athlete as “a person who is proficient in sports and other forms of physical exercise.” Hunting is no different from other sports in that you need to be in the best shape you can be mentally and physically. For the award-winning athlete and hunter Amanda Lynn Mayhew, being in peak physical condition has been a challenge over the course of her life.
Mayhew recently received the Jeffrey Reed Courage Award, which honors an athlete from the Southwestern Ontario region who inspires others with their courage both on and off the playing field. Â Established in 2016 by husband-and-wife Jeffrey and Elizabeth Reed, and presented by LondonOntarioSports.com, the Courage Award has been presented to members of football, soccer, and hockey organizations. Mayhew is the first shooting sports athlete to be honored with this award.
Mayhew is a little different than your typical athlete.  Although she trained as a bodybuilder more than 20 years ago and still keeps a regimented fitness plan, she lives with numerous challenges including asthma, Grave’s disease, Postherpetic Neuralgia, laryngopharyngeal reflux disease, and irritable bowel disease. Recently, she was diagnosed with PTSD – post-traumatic stress disorder.
“I am incredibly honored to receive such an important award,” she said. “The Jeffrey Reed Courage Award means so much to me because of the ailments I struggle with and have overcome. I decided long ago to be brave and focus on what I can do, rather than focus on my limitations. As I started sharing my accomplishments and the lessons learned from failures, I was greatly inspired by individuals just like Jeffrey Reed to teach and encourage others.”
That Hunting Girl
Mayhew is best known for her TV show, THAT Hunting Girl, airing on Sportsman Channel Canada. The new season of THAT Hunting Girl marks Mayhew’s sixth production season and her 46th year of life continuing to break barriers and spread inspiration to outdoors enthusiasts the world over.
“LondonOntarioSports.com is proud to now include Amanda Lynn Mayhew amongst the names of our impressive Courage Award winners,” said Jeffrey Reed, a long-time sports journalist and disabled athlete who lives with numerous skeletal disabilities. Despite his own challenges, Reed pitched for the London Majors of the semi-professional Intercounty Baseball League as a 39-year-old rookie and today is known across Canada as a skilled golfer and advocate for disabled athletes.
“Amanda Lynn’s story speaks of an incredible journey of hope, determination, and never giving up, no matter what the odds,” Reed explained. “She grew up in a trailer park in Manitouwadge, Ont. raised three boys as a single mother and continues to live with numerous ailments. Yet through her brand, Just Hunt Inc., she continues to encourage Canadians from coast to coast to learn about the outdoors and, in turn, learn a myriad of life’s lessons. I could not ask for a better athlete to represent what the Courage Award is all about: dreaming big, working hard, and never giving up hope while mentoring others along the way.”