Charone Gray-Edwards, Laila Edwards’ mom, cheered on her daughter during today’s women’s ice hockey game — and she made it to Milan through a donation from Travis Kelce.
Laila Edwards, center, the first Black woman to suit up for Team USA women’s Olympic hockey, with her parents, Charone Gray-Edwards, left, and Robert Edwards, right, in her childhood home in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, in 2025. Sue Ogrocki / AP file
Laila Edwards, an Ohio native, started a GoFundMe to get her family to Italy for her Olympic debut, and one large donation brought her family to the Milan Cortina Games.
“So we have a mutual friend of [the Kelce brothers], and he called me and he said, ‘Hey, did you get a large donation?’ And I said, ‘We did, anonymous.’ And he said, ‘Well, that was Travis,’” Gray-Edwards told NBC News correspondent Stephanie Gosk.
Today, in a red, white and blue hat that her daughter will easily be able to find in the crowd, Gray-Edwards watched her daughter step out onto the ice as the first Black woman to represent the U.S. in Olympic hockey.
“I’m ecstatic, I’m overwhelmed, I’m excited for her, and I’m really proud,” Gray-Edwards said.
While Gray-Edwards is celebrating her daughter’s historic journey to the Olympics, she doesn’t want people to lose sight of Laila’s skill.
“She’s an awesome hockey player, so I don’t want people to forget that part. But yes, it is a milestone. It’s an accomplishment that she’s the first Black woman, and we’re excited about that,” Gray-Edwards said.
