Jude Schimmel continues to attract crowds

University of Louisville women’s basketball fans aren’t quite ready to let Jude Schimmel go, wanting to hang on to her as long as possible. They were scrunched together, between 200 and 300 people deep, in the Cardinal Hall of Fame Cafe Sunday for two hours to see her.

The crowd wanted autographed copies of Dreamcatcher, her new book, and they were also eager to thank for her contributions during her four seasons at UofL. One of them, Paula Radmacher, brought two attractively bound scrapbooks and memorablia she had compiled to present to Jude. More than a few had purchased two or more books.

Also in the crowd was the family of Justin Amlung, a former UofL pitching great. Justin’s dad revealed that his son had been picked by the Washington Nationals after being waived by the Chicago Cubs organization.

The book chronicles memories of her time with the UofL basketball team and of growing up on a Native American reservation. Especially interesting are her memories of her team’s upset of No. 1 Baylor during the 2013.  She has some great things to say about Coach Jeff Walz, too.

Jude published the book herself, hoping it will serve as an inspiration to other Native American children to pursue their dreams. Judging by the number of people buying two or three copies of the $20 book, she may have earned enough to pay for the printing already.

Choosing to stand during the entire event, Jude was in no hurry, taking time to chat with each fan, thanking them for supporting her and the UofL basketball team, clearly enjoying her time in a different format.

Jude says she wants to finish her Master’s degree at UofL so she will be around through August. Then she plans to play basketball overseas.

The book can be purchased for $20 here. Caution, some fans may be tempted to acquire numerous copies of the book.