Meet Ellie Whittington

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ellie Whittington.

Hi Ellie, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers?
I grew up in the small town of Wilkesboro in the foothills of North Carolina. From a young age, I fell in love with being active and used sports as a way to do so.

After graduating from Elon University, I came to the Triangle to pursue my master’s at NC State University. Upon moving to the area in 2018, I fell in love with the Triangle and all it had to offer.

I started daily exploring local coffee shops to find the best place to complete my grad school work. I also became a fitness instructor at the YMCA of the Triangle.

After the completion of my master’s degree, I accepted a position for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. Due to the pandemic, this was postponed. In the meantime, I accepted a role as the social media assistant with the Durham Bulls. The way Durham incapsulates minor league baseball is incredible.

One of my favorite things about the area is the sports culture. During this time, I worked for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics remote while working for the Durham Bulls. I, then, continued my career as an Assistant Director of Social Media for Duke University Athletics.

Yet again I was able to work the Olympic Games and fulfilled that role in the winter for the 2022 Beijing Olympics.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Working in sports has always been the goal of my career. In no way has this been a linear path. Pursuing my master’s was challenging as I balanced classes at NC State and UNC. I was so excited to celebrate the milestone of graduation and continue in my career around the same time the pandemic hit in 2020.

The next year brought some of the greatest challenges of my life as I worked odd jobs to make ends meet and often lived with friends. I pursued relentlessly to get a job in the sports industry during a time when sports weren’t happening.

There were many times in those months when I wanted to give up on my dreams and accept a different path. As they say, hindsight is 20/20 (but let’s not make any reference to 2020 ha!), I am glad I made it to the other side.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
My field of work is in social media.

I create content (via video and photo), ideate entertaining content, write captions, and analyze data for all social media channels. You can catch me on TikToks interviewing Olympic Gold Medalist Lindsey Vonn to being on the sidelines with a phone or camera in hand creating my own story.

I am most proud of my creativity and the way I make my work stand out.

Are there any books, apps, podcasts, or blogs that help you do your best?
I think motivation and self-care are individualistic. For me, things that have helped me personally are making sure I have time in a day to be active and journal my thoughts.

Books: The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Comer, Going There by Katie Couric

Also, sometimes I just need a “Man, I Feel Like A Woman” dance party to Shania Twain.

Contact Info:

• Website: theellietimes.com
• Instagram: @TheEllieTimes
• Facebook: @TheEllieTimes
• Twitter: @TheEllieTimes