The sixteenth of 20 children, Bolton shares her thoughts on the woman who "did it all" and on how she views herself and the WNBA in the context of women's history.
"This may not be a woman that a lot of people know, but I’m going to have to say my mom. And I know there may be bias or whatever, but to me, my mom raised 20 kids and she did an excellent job. She had babies for almost 30 years and was just a lady full of love and just exemplified what true nurturing is. She knew when a baby cried, she knew whether they had a tooth ache, whether their head was hurting or whether their stomach was aching. She just knew that. It’s just that mother instinct. To me, just to watch her, to me meant a lot. And then with the land, the gardening, she just did it all, inside and out. And I really respect her for that. She’s passed on, but to me, my mom is the woman that I would like to recognize."
Do you think of yourself as a part of women's history and how?
"Oh, I think so. To me, to be to one of the premier players in the WNBA, I feel that we sort of set a stage. Women before us set a stage, but I feel like I set a stage for a lot of other women coming down the line and it even feels good to go internationally and know that people recognize you and I feel like I’ve sort of become an old-timer. I remember when I was the youngest one on the team, not the oldest. But I feel like I’ve helped lay the foundation and it feels good to be able to give back in that way, to help pave the way."
Is it tough to be a pioneer, to take the first steps?
"It’s enjoyable. We did it in such an awesome fashion. After winning the Olympics in ’96, going right into the WNBA. The Olympics in ’96 really opened people’s eyes to women’s basketball. It feels good to have been a part of that, to actually keep it going. That’s why we all hope that the WNBA continues because it’s doing a lot, not just for the game, it’s just doing a lot for the mentoring mentality for young people. And to me, that really means a lot. One Isiah Thomas quote that I really appreciate – and actually I was saying this before I read it – but I’m going to say it as our quote. The saying is that when I’m done playing basketball if all you remember me as is a great basketball player, then I haven’t done my job with the rest of my life. And to me, that’s what I think the WNBA brings more than just on-the-court stuff, it brings that total, complete woman."
What would you want to leave as your legacy?
"I don’t want you to think about me years down the road and just write, oh she was a great three-point shooter… No, I want it to be that it was her impact on young people. That’s what I want most kids to remember – what I said off the court, something that inspired them, something to keep some young girl from dropping out of school, to help some young boy to keep him from getting on drugs. Those are things that to me will last a lot longer than hitting a three point shot to win the game because when somebody else hits one, you’ll soon be forgotten in the game of basketball but in the game of life, it’s a continuing process."
