Courtesy of Elizabeth Wickham
I know firsthand the sacrifices swim moms make, even though we may have different degrees of interest and passion for our role. Some of us may be swim moms for only a few years and others for a couple decades. Throughout my years of being a swim mom, I believe it’s the moms who keep the sport afloat because of the little things we do every single day.
Here are 10 reasons for swim dads, swimmers and coaches to take a moment and say thank you to swim moms:
ONE
We attend to our swimmer’s needs, get them to practice and make sure the homework is done. We’re on the front lines making it happen every single day.
TWO
We are our children’s source of nutritious meals and snacks. We make sure our kids stay hydrated and provide recovery meals after workouts and meets.
THREE
While the kids are young, it’s usually the mom behind the wheel taking kids to school and pool. The swim moms arrange and volunteer for the carpool.
FOUR
Who orders those ridiculously expensive suits? And the practice suits, parkas, kick boards, fins and snorkels? It’s most often a swim mom.
FIVE
We listen to more experienced swim moms and gain from their experience, making us better sports parents.
SIX
We reach out to newer parents and help them through all the fine details of being a swim mom.
SEVEN
We are the backbone of the team. If there’s a banquet, swim meet, or any team function, you’ll see a group of moms behind the scenes.
EIGHT
We wash the swim towels. Endlessly.
NINE
We encourage our swimmers to be their best and we cheer on their teammates and friends as if they were our own children.
TEN
We are a source of unconditional love. We love our children regardless if they get a personal best, win their race or DQ.
Why are you thankful for swim moms?
Elizabeth Wickham volunteered for 14 years on her kids’ club team as board member, fundraiser, newsletter editor and “Mrs. meet manager.” She’s a writer with a bachelor of arts degree in editorial journalism from the University of Washington with a long career in public relations, marketing and advertising. Her stories have appeared in newspapers and magazines including the Los Angeles Times, Orange County Parenting and Ladybug.You can read more parenting tips on her blog.
swim moms rock! I’d like to add knowing every state time, y national time and personal goal time. I get asked this at least once a meet and I can rattle it off like the alphabet. That and being able to estimate when the meet session will end. ?
Glad to see Leslie Barens in this picture. She and John were right behind Ricky and other two children not pictured.
Ervin, Barens and Targett ??
The photo shown here is perfect for this story but I didn’t see where you identify the “swim mom.” She is none other than Charlotte’s own Leslie Berens, mother of gold medalist Ricky Berens (show left of her) and a swim coach in her own right. She initially became a summer league swim coach to support her own kids in swimming. Her drive to support her own children as well as many many others is unsurpassed in my experience. Great photo pick!
I couldn’t agree more! My husband is always there and will do the best he can to help with home meets, drive the swim carpool but do not expect him to prepare snacks, towels, water and make sure our kids had a good meal before the meet. But I’m still thankful that we do it as a team.