I grew up in the
Philippines and Japan.
I started swimming
competitively at the age of six in the
Philippines.
I swam in Manila,
Philippines and in Yokohama, Japan.
My most memorable
highlight was an international meet in
Manila,
where, as a 9 year
old, I placed first in the 50-meter fly.
When I started High
school in in the States,
The town of Redmond
did not have a community pool,
much less a high
school pool. I helped the people of
Redmond Oregon to
vote in a city community pool.
It took many
door-to-door flyers and a lot of
fast-talking.
When the vote was in
and construction was underway,
I again pushed,
this time to start a swim team for the high
school.
It was accomplished,
and I swam, lettered and went to State.
As a lifeguard and a
Water Safety Instructor, I started teaching
toddler and
Mother-infant classes in 1980. I moved on to
teach
High school and
Middle school students swimming in Phys Ed
class.
My husband, son, and
I moved here in 1988.
My son grew up here
in N. Fort Myers and now resides in Cape
Coral.
I made a choice, to
leave the work force and become a stay at home
mom.
It has been a good
decision.
My daughter Nicole
joined Swim Florida in 2007.
I volunteer at
Nicole’s elementary school and now I am
a
volunteer assistant
coach for the North Fort Myers Swim Florida
Team
Head Coach Julie Van
Der Plaats
