Shelby Selina Lee passed away on December 28, 2010 in Maple Valley, as a strong active girl who grew up in a wrestling community. Whether you lived in Kent, Maple Valley, Enumclaw or any other nearby city, if you were a wrestler, you knew of Shelby Lee. Shelby began wrestling when she was only eight years old, an excellent wrestler from the start and, although she never tipped the scale past 115 pounds, she could take down guys and girls who were twice her size. She was fierce on the mat, but always had a smile for you any other time you’d run into her. She was an amazing person who dedicated her life to wrestling and her church. I personally remember Shelby, as does my brother Jesse Whitton. We always felt a lump in our throats when her notorious green wrestling shoes appeared at a match.

Shelby may have been wrestling for only nine years when she passed away, but in that time span she had won six State titles and was a two-time National team member. Her life was a short, yet full one. She grew up in a family who loved everything she did, and there was never a wrestling event that Shelby was part of that her family wasn’t right alongside of her. Shelby’s parents, Dan and Carol Lee, brought their three daughters up through the Kent School District, putting Shelby into Kentridge High School after attending Northwood Junior High.

The Kent Cougars Junior Wrestling program honored Shelby’s life Saturday December 19, when they changed their annual holiday tournament to be a memorial of how she brought a new face to wrestling for the team and the community. Shelby’s memorial tournament was held once again this year by the Kent Cougars who invited nine other teams, bringing in over four hundred wrestlers from ages 5-12. The tournament included big teams like Enumclaw, Vashon, Orting, Olympia, Puyallup, Bethel, White River, Shelton, Montesano, and Kent.

Shelby Lee’s memorial tournament started off with speeches about Shelby, who she was, and what she lived for with her “Iron Will”. Kent coach Ruben Navejas, Shelby’s parents, and Shelby’s younger sister Taylor Lee, (who grew up as Shelby’s sister and wrestling partner), all spoke and sang the National Anthem in honor of Shelby, and the impact she had on them all.

The Cougars went along to finish things off at the tournament bringing another win for Shelby and keeping their undefeated record intact as they won the tournament by nearly fifty points over runner-up Bethel, with White River making the podium in third by three points over the fourth place team from Montesano.