Move over Baywatch, it's time for 'Greywatch' in Saint John
CBC
Susan Keeley never had a chance to learn how to swim as a kid. In 1985, when the Canada Games came to Saint John, she fell in love with the sport and decided to join the aquatics centre named after the event.
"I swam every day, instead of going to eat at Market Square, and I'd copy all the people in the lanes and when they weren't watching I tried to do what they did."
Now Keeley and two other retirees are working to give back to the pool they spend so much time in by becoming certified as lifeguards.
The trio — who call themselves Greywatch — just finished their Bronze Cross certification and will take the National Lifeguard certification next.
"I love the aquatic centre," Keeley said when asked why she wanted to become a lifeguard.
Having three new lifeguards will help keep the centre adequately staffed, according to Amy McLennan, the centre's general manager.
McLennan said there is a national lifeguard shortage due to delays in certification caused by the pandemic.
"And at the aquatic centre we have a range of ages in terms of our membership and our patrons," she said. "So it makes sense to have a range of ages on deck."
Once fully certified, they'll work at least 10 hours a month at the pool.
Another member of Greywatch, Brad Doley, has also been swimming at the centre since it opened in 1985.
"The three of us here that have been doing this, we're all what the government calls old," Doley said.
But that doesn't mean they can't dive into the water and save lives.
"Everything that we're doing and have done and will have to do to pass this course, is the same thing that any 15-16-18-year-old has to do. There's no favouritism for us whatsoever," he said.
He quotes a line from the David Myles song When it Comes my Turn, "I'm getting old, but I'm not old yet."
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