Smith ‘always cared about the whole individual ... not just the swimmer’
Former Whitecaps, colleagues share some thoughts on Ginny Smith
In her four-and-a-half decades as a swim coach in Yarmouth, Ginny Smith got to know – and had an impact on – many people. We invited a few of them to talk a bit about Smith. Bobby Lou Reardon (former Whitecap swimmer and longtime coach with the team. Reardon is a viceprincipal at Yarmouth Consolidated Memorial High School.)
“I have known Gin since I was 10 or 11 years old. I have been with her since she came to the Yarmouth Y Whitecaps, both as a swimmer and, for the last 31 years, as a fellow coach (during which time I have still trained under her coaching). Besides being a lifelong swim coach, Gin has been another mother, a mentor, a continual support, a colleague in both the school system and on the pool deck, one of my dearest friends and a positive influence in my life.
“Gin coaches swimmers, but what she really does is shape their lives. She supports them in a myriad of ways, models respect, compassion and open-mindedness, and in doing so she instills good ethics, great qualities of citizenship and social responsibility and helps them make healthy choices/ decisions as they mature. Gin has always cared about the whole individual and not just the swimmer in each of us.
“She has touched thousands of lives. In every way and on every day, Gin shares her wisdom, life experiences, community mindedness, care/concern for the environment and healthy food and life choices with all of her swimmers. None of us can measure all the ways or degree to which Ginny Smith shaped our lives. Other than my parents, I am most grateful to Gin, who has and continues to be the largest influence in my life.” Michael Gorman (Gorman competed for the Whitecaps and later spent five years coaching the team with Smith. Gorman is a journalist with the CBC in Nova Scotia.)
“Her selflessness is pretty unparalleled, I’d say. She’s done what she’s done every day for no reason other than passion for the sport and passion for helping kids become the best people they could become - and not just as swimmers.
“Ginny has always been about developing the total person. If someone wanted to reach great competitive heights, she could help them get there (and did), but if they just wanted to be fit or cross-train for another sport or simply have a positive social environment in which to hang out, she facilitated all of that too. She had as much time for the fastest kid on the team as she did for someone who was new and just learning their way through the sport.
“It’s difficult to imagine a more ideal coach. I’m not sure the community fully appreciates the contribution she’s made through the decades to the development of young people.” Jennifer Hood (a former Whitecap swimmer and now a Whitecap coach, Hood is aquatics supervisor for the YMCA of Yarmouth.)
“She has taught me so much about coaching and dealing with people over the years it is really hard to put into words. I go to her for advice, mentoring about swimming, a listening ear as well as shoulder to cry on at times. She played many roles as a coach for so long and no one could ever know how much she has meant to the Whitecaps over the years.
“She is certainly irreplaceable in every sense of the word. As a parent of one of her swimmers, I thank her for all her patience and guidance. As a coach, I only hope I can be half the coach she is and will try very hard to live up to the high standards she has set. We will miss her very much around the YMCA. It won’t be the same not seeing her walk in with her five bags of coaching gear every night.” Steve Indig (Indig competed for the Whitecaps. He became a lawyer and lives in the Toronto area, where he works for the Sport Law & Strategy Group.)
“I feel completely blessed to have had such a compassionate, committed and caring coach who enabled me to grow as a person and as an athlete.
“I will never forget our opportunity to attend national championships in Victoria, B.C. and see her walking down a busy street with a kayak on her head between heats and finals as she needed not only to coach me but ensure she was able to complete her daily physical activity.
“Ginny’s dedication to the sport of swimming, coaching, and to her athletes is second to none. I am sure she will never realize the impact she has had on me as an athlete, coach, father and professional. I thank her on my behalf and on behalf of the thousands of athletes who likely have the same thing to say about her.” From Bette El-Hawary (executive director, Swim Nova Scotia):
“Ginny has been such an important part of swimming in Nova Scotia and will be greatly missed. I have many great memories as a young swimmer having the opportunity to work with Ginny, and now as an adult working with her in various capacities. She is a wealth of knowledge and shared her passion for swimming with so many swimmers across the province.” Ginny Smith is pictured this past May at the Yarmouth Town and County Sports Heritage Association’s Hall of Fame ceremony, where she represented her son, Shannon Smith, who was inducted in the local sports Hall of Fame in recognition of his accomplishments as a competitive swimmer. As a youth, he was a member of Ginny Smith’s Whitecaps. (Shannon Smith now lives in California and was not present to attend the Hall of Fame ceremony in Yarmouth.)