Yara Helmy
Yara Helmy is a black belt in Jiu Jitsu under Jonavin Webb and Jay Regalbuto. She has been training since 2012 and was an avid competitor which include several super fights with several promotion companies including F2W. She loves seeing the amount of women who train continue to grow every year. When she first started, it was mostly just her and her sister but now it’s nice to see consistent female presence. Other than training and lifting most of the time, she has her own baking business where she makes custom cakes and other baked goods. She is also a Registered Dietitian and hopes to one day work with athletes
Nancy Helmy
Nancy Helmy is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Black Belt. She has been training for 9 years. Her and her sister Yara Helmy are a part of the Girls in Gis NJ chapter. When she is off the mats, she works in healthcare. She has a masters in public health and global studies.
Christy Balassaitis
Christy Balassaitis is a brown belt training out of Webb Fitness & MMA in South Jersey. She and Tarah Coward, friends since kindergarten, began their jiu jitsu journeys together in 2015. As they were more often than not the only two women in the gym, they share a passion for building up women’s programs in their area. They have been hosting women’s open mats for jiujiteiras in the tristate area since 2018 and have been involved with the Girls In Gis organization since 2021. Off the mats, Christy obtained degrees in Mathematics and Education, works in Payroll & Human Resources, and is an avid Philly sports fan (Go Birds).
Tarah Coward
Tarah is a BJJ Brown Belt with Professor Jonavin Webb. She started her BJJ journey in 2015 when she attended a women’s self-defense seminar with her best friend Christy. Afterwards, the two were hooked. Coming from a male dominated profession off the mats, Tarah is dedicated to advancing women’s role in civil engineering and knew she wanted to do the same with jiu jitsu. Along with a few teammates she began hosting women’s open mats, meeting women from other schools as well as welcoming new women into the sport. Through the community formed during these open mats, Tarah began volunteering with Girls in Gis. When she’s not training, she is an avid gardener and loves to hike with her husband and rescue pups.
Anna Panaccio
Anna began training jiu jitsu in 2016 after taking cardio boxing/kickboxing for years prior; curiously eyeing up the mats the whole time. She recently earned her brown belt under Jonavin Webb. She began volunteering with Girls in Gis shortly after attending her first event and gaining admiration for the organization’s mission. Anna is an advocate of empowering girls and women both on and off the mats, recently ending her career with the Girl Scouts to be a full-time caregiver for her in-laws. In her free time, she enjoys cooking and watching Philadelphia sports and UFC events with her partner and their rescue dog, Pablo.