SwimRVA strives to provide an inclusive environment not only for our members, but also for our guests and neighboring communities. The Kasmir family is a great example of guests that flourish from such an environment, as sisters Brooke and Julia each benefit in their own unique ways from their time at SwimRVA when the family is in town.
Residing in Northern Virginia, the Kasmir family travels to Richmond over holiday breaks to visit family. As Brooke is a competitive swimmer for York Swim Club of Northern Virginia, the family sought out a facility that she could train at while away from her home team. This led them to SwimRVA. Over the week-long break, Brooke hopped in with SwimRVA’s Rapids Swim Team to join the group for holiday training.
“We chose SwimRVA because of how friendly the staff was”, explained Michael, Brooke’s father. “We were looking for a week of training when in town, and Brooke especially felt that the girls in the practice group that she joined were really nice to her.” Michael shared that after a lack of structured pool time over last year’s holiday break, Brooke had a harder time getting back in the water, especially when it came to preparing for competition that shortly followed. After training with the Rapids during the following spring break, Brooke was able to maintain her athletic endurance, contributing to a stellar showing at the 2024 ISCA Elite Showcase Classic in St. Petersburg, Fla. Moving forward, the family hopes that Brooke will continue to find success by practicing at SwimRVA to fill the gap in her training over break.
Julia, the oldest of the Kasmir sisters, has autism, which presents additional challenges when it comes to swimming. However, she has been making waves in the pool lately as she hit a major milestone right here at SwimRVA. During the Kasmir Family’s previous visit, Julia swam 25 yards unassisted in SwimRVA’s competition pool for the first time. Now, over the most recent winter break, she was swimming multiple repetitions of unassisted 50-yard swims as her mom and dad cheered her on. “Julia loves it here”, Michael explained with a smile. “This is her best pool.”
Although Julia has been jumping in the pool since she was three years old, she struggled to stay swimming on top of the water as she was able to touch her feet to the shallow bottom. At 7’7” deep, the competition pool at SwimRVA-CSAC forced Julia to stay at the surface, allowing her to make literal strides in improving her swimming abilities. Julia’s next goal is to further increase the distance she swims, extending to 100 yards unassisted and potentially become involved in swimming-related programming and competition.
For Brooke, Julia, and many others, the pool is more than just a place to swim; it is a space where individuals are able to feel included, valued, and capable. SwimRVA is committed to fostering inclusiveness for all and looks forward to sharing even more inspiring success stories like that of the Kasmir family.