by Chris Tittel, qnotes contributor and Lainey Millen, qnotes staff
Famed actress Kelly McGillis was in Key West, Fla., from Jan. 28-Feb. 1 for the International Women’s Flag Football Association’s (IWFFA) 25th Kelly McGillis International Women’s & Girls Flag Football tournament.
McGillis is known for her roles in such films as “Witness” (which netted her both Golden Globe and BAFTA Award nominations for her breakout performance), “Top Gun” (in the unforgettable role as Charlie opposite Tom Cruise) and “The Accused” (with Jodie Foster as an attorney representing a rape victim). She was on hand during the tournament festivities and served as its director.
Originally from Newport Beach, Calif., she attended the Pacific Conservatory of Performing Arts in Santa Monica, Calif., and graduated from The Julliard School in New York, N.Y.
McGillis has appeared on both the large and small screen. For instance, she joined the cast of “The L Word” during its fifth season. She also performs onstage in the U.S. and abroad and has numerous credits to her name. She serves as an acting instructor at The New York Studio for Stage and Screen in Asheville, N.C.
She was the recipient of the 2010 Philadelphia QFest’s Artistic Achievement Award for Acting to honor her career.
McGillis resides in Hendersonville, N.C., with her wife, Dr. Lynn Bennett.
She has two daughters, Kelsey and Sonora, from a previous marriage to Fred Tillman.
IWFFA, an organization run by women, is an alliance of girls and women’s flag football teams, leagues and individual players from around the world.
Since 2000, McGillis has lent her name to the annual tournament. A humanitarian, she is a large supporter of the association’s efforts and believes in the empowerment of girls and women, the organization said.