“My family has been part of the Fanwood-Scotch Plains YMCA for about six years now. We originally joined FSPY for the Swim Team. We had moved from Metuchen and were looking for a new team to join and heard great things about the team here. Over the years, the Y has helped me grow in several ways, and I’m incredibly grateful for the FSPY community. Through the Swim Team, I’ve developed tenacity and the ability to overcome failure. Every race is not going to be a good one, but I’ll always have my coaches and my teammates supporting me. This has prepared me for the real world because it’s not perfect at all. COVID is an example of how things do not go the way that you expect. Being on the team allowed me to experience failure and get back up and make a plan to improve the next time, which I think was valuable to learn early on in my life. The team also connects me with people of all ages. For example, I’ve been able to tutor and coach younger swimmers on the team, which makes me really happy and is a privilege to be able to do. As older swimmers, we’re able to have a huge impact on the younger swimmers – to foster camaraderie, to enable them to enjoy the sport while simultaneously enduring challenges, and to help them improve not only in the water but also with their academics and their overall mindset.
In March, when everything started shutting down, it felt like my life was turned upside down. I think a lot of people can relate to that, and although the Y was closed for a few months, there was even some normalcy in the sense that we did video chats with our practice groups. I looked forward to staying connected with my teammates through those meetings. Then, we were able to swim again starting in the summer, and that was awesome, because I’m still not able to do a lot of things like normal – my school isn’t normal, a lot of my activities are canceled, I can’t hang out with my friends like I used to – but to be able to continue to work on my strokes, to continue to have those two hours a day when I’m with my teammates, solely focused on my physical activity and my technique, is really incredible.
The Y is important for people of all ages really; it’s a support system. It connects people, not just through the social programs that it offers, but also just by sharing their challenges that they’re trying to overcome, which I think is really important. It’s a lot easier to be dealing with a tough time with someone there for you than dealing with it alone, and the Y allows you to do that.”