I have been the Minnetonka Head Coach for Girls and Boys Swimming since August 2021, and during that time I have been fortunate to be a part of any number of amazing opportunities and outcomes. This season was one of the most rewarding of the 30+ years I have been coaching competitive swimming.
During my time as Boys Head Coach, I was able to work with a young man named Graham Muench. Graham is now competing as a Freshman for Gustavus – very happy and excited for him. During our meets I would see Graham’s sister Ava cheering for him or just hanging out around the pool. Ava is a special needs student in the Minnetonka School District. As a high functioning student with Down’s Syndrome Ava was always cognizant of what was going on around her, but she had her own interests and pursuits, one of which was her iPad, which I would see her working on a lot during Graham’s meets.
Earlier this year Graham’s mom, Carrie, reached out to me and asked if I thought it would be possible for Ava to try out for High School Swimming with the Minnetonka High School team. Our team generally has 60-70 swimmers and divers. We practice in multiple groups many hours each day. Our scheduling and logistics for all our various activities in and out of the water are complicated. How could we integrate Ava into this madness?
We ended up selecting the first hour of our Varsity practice 2-3 times each week for Ava to participate in. The idea was that co-Head Coach Dennis Dadashev and I would take turns working with her. This lasted for about a week and a half. What happened next was what was truly incredible.
We had a group of four Varsity girls who began working with Ava. Each of these young women were exceptional swimmers. The four swimmers are Annie Hippen, Mikayla Kangas, Morgan Raether, and Rylie Ulett. Sometimes working together, sometimes alone or in a smaller group, each of these young women sacrificed time from their warmup and practice schedule to be a part of Ava’s swim team life. As Ava’s confidence grew, she became a better swimmer, and the para-aides she would have accompany her to practice became more knowledgeable as well.
As a coach with very limited experience working with athletes with Down’s Syndrome, I was helped immensely by Ava’s mom, who went out of her way to help me with any number of resources to read and watch, but the thing that helped me the most was Ava’s trust in my ability to make her laugh and have fun. I never knew that saying “Talk to the hand because the face ain’t listening” could have a transformative, positive impact on a person! I also learned a lot about anxiety and insecurity. I learned that it’s not easy for everyone to ride the team bus to a meet. It’s not easy to be a swimmer at a meet when you are sensitive to sound, our wearing a team swim cap when you have sensitivity to tight fitting things. I learned to take a deep breath and be patient – I have always had incredible respect for coaches with a special needs background. Our strength coach, Taylor Moon, is a leader of our special needs population at Minnetonka High School, and watching how he handles our athletes with care and compassion in part because of his background with a brother with Down’s Syndrome and in part because of his training and experience as a special needs teacher was and continues to be a source of inspiration. I think our team members learned many of the same lessons as well, but everyone was rock solid about Ava’s membership on our team – at the end of the day she was another Minnetonka Skipper – no more, no less.
Our team learned a lot as well. We learned to make space for those around us and to be tolerant of differences. We learned that not every day is easy, and that sometimes you must come up with creative solutions to get each other in the water or to even take a few strokes for a practice. Most importantly, we learned how to celebrate our individual achievement. One thing that stuck with me was something I noticed about Ava when she would swim – even though she was capable of rotary breathing through a 50 Freestyle, she would sometimes stop and take a few dog paddles. I asked her if the reason that she was doing that was because she liked hearing people cheering for her and she responded with an enthusiastic “YES!” If all of us could only remember to celebrate the little things like that in our daily lives and for others I think the world would be a much better place.
I cannot thank Ava and her support group enough for being a part of our Minnetonka Swim and Dive family this season. No matter how much Ava got out of the season, I believe that we benefited more.
Minnesota Swim and Vibe is all smiles on this one. This sport is full of competitive, driven people…but…many of them are able to put that all in perspective with the bigger picture of life. This is winning at the high level and will never come with a medal or spot on a podium. Much respect and vibe on Skippers!!!