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Tale of two YMCA swimmers
Wednesday, June 18, 2003 Marblehead Reporter
One is headed to college in the Berkshires, an eventual job and the odyssey known as adulthood. The other, just an 8th-grader, embarks upon the roller-coaster called high school next fall at Philips Exeter.
Both are very successful competitive swimmers who began their personal and athletic evolutions in the YMCA pool at age 7, and both look back at the wake of their many laps.
Despite their five-year age difference, YMCA Sharks teammates Sara Buckley and Meredith Mead demonstrate none of the "sibling" rivalry one might suspect of typical teens when singled-out for attention. Clearly, there is no "I" in this team.
Swampscott's Buckley, 18, a graduating senior at Bishop Fenwick who's headed to Williams College next fall, owns more Marblehead-Swampscott YMCA swimming records than your local music store has CD's.
The speedster owns all of the Class A freestyle marks, ranging from 50 yards (25.91) to 1650 yards (18:30.07); the 200-yard breaststroke best (2:36.56) and all of the backstroke, butterfly and individual medley records, for a total of 13 individual top performances. She also served as team captain for two seasons.
Buckley has earned individual and relay team All-Scholastic honors from the Boston Globe and the Herald, and she was a Salem Evening News Student-Athlete of the Year nominee. She captained the Bishop Fenwick swim team and was named MVP twice. The Lynn Daily Item named her "Swimmer of the Year" for two consecutive seasons.
"I could have joined other swim clubs, but I chose to stay with the Y because of the coaching staff and the family atmosphere," said Buckley, who will swim for 2003 NESCAC title-winning Ephs. "I've learned a lot about teamwork, and the importance of hard work and dedication. That will stay with me no matter what I do."
Mead, a 13-year-old who just finished 8th grade at Marblehead Middle School, has captured her own impressive set of seven swimming milestones in the YMCA Class B record book, including "bests" in the 50-, 100-, 1000-, and 1650-yard freestyle events, both backstroke marks and the 200-yard butterfly (2:33.27).
"The Y has a team focus; it's not about individuals," said Mead who will swim at Phillips Exeter and hopes to compete at the collegiate level. "We always support each other, and the friendships are very strong."
"Our goal has never been to produce Olympians," said Sue Guertin, Y swim director and coach of the Sharks' Marblehead-Swampscott squad. "We're trying to develop better human beings through swimming by teaching life lessons of discipline, commitment and a strong work ethic.
"Our success is not measured by our victories but by the kind of young people like Sara and Meredith who exemplify the Y values of caring, honesty, respect and responsibility. That's what sets us apart from other swim programs."
Both athletes are stars in the classroom, too. Buckley is treasurer of the National Honor Society, won the Wellesley College Book Award, and earned top scores in the biology and history advanced placement exams. She's considering a career in veterinary science.
Mead merited the Honor Roll every quarter for the past three school years, and she also earned a "Certificat d'Assiduite" for participating in the National French Exam.
"Meredith not only is a top-notch athlete but she's an excellent student and a mature, responsible young woman," said Kristen Purdy Russett, a French teacher at the Marblehead Middle School who has taught Mead for two years. "She's well-liked by her peers, and she's a self-motivated and intelligent student who always goes the 'extra mile' to do her best."
Buckley, the youngest of three children and the daughter of Frederick and Patricia Buckley, shined in the community, too. She's volunteered for the Crombie Street Shelter Thanksgiving food drive, the Y's Partnership with Youth Campaign, participated in youth programs at St. John the Evangelist, and served as an unpaid coach for the Sharks this past spring as part of her school's community service program.
Her parish recently honored her with a scholarship for her volunteer commitments.
"Sara is an outstanding student, and I was blessed to have her in class for two years," said Ernestine Struzziero, an Advanced Placement Chemistry and Biology teacher at Bishop Fenwick. "She's a person of strong opinions and she's very firm in her convictions. It has been a pleasure to see her grow and mature as a young woman."
Mead, who has an 11-year-old sister, is the daughter of Sarah Mead. Meredith has participated in soccer, cross-country and sailing, and she's won the Coaches' Award at the Pleon Yacht Club. She's also applied her swimming expertise for a good cause, finishing first among youth participants in the HAWC ocean swim, which raised funds for the Salem-based organization that provides services to abused women and their children.
"The all-around performance of these two, young women is a source of great pride by for the Y," said Marblehead-Swampscott YMCA Executive Director Paul Gorman. "Sara and Meredith each epitomize the YMCA values, and they personally reflect our mission of building individuals with a healthy spirit, mind and body. It's so gratifying to see them experience success as athletes, students and members of the community."
Submitted by YMCA of the North Shore Sharks
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