January Information

Erin Julius

January Information

The goal for our team as we move into January is FOCUS!  A few things you can work on with your athletes as we lean into focused training….

  • Focus on Mindset and Affirmations – I am strong. I am confident. I am disciplined in my training. I am committed.  I am always improving. I am resilient.
  • Focus on the Process – the “how” and not only the outcome. Concentrating on the things I can control throughout the process– effort, attitude, preparation.
  • Focus on Encouragement and Resilience – this includes embracing difficulty, learning from failure.  “Success is earned one practice at a time.”
  • Focus on a supportive Environment – Being a part of the team creating a positive space where teammates feel valued.

Swim Meets

  • Washington Open Invitational – January 15-18 (closed for registration)
  • SMAC Winter Invitational – January 17-18 (closed for registration)
  • Intrasquad swim meet at PRO – January 23-25
    • Registration deadline is January 10th.

Toys for Tots FINAL

Thank you for your enthusiasm and energy in bringing toys in for the Toys for Tots drive for the holidays.  You not only helped bless many families for the holidays, but you helped instill a sense of care and philanthropy in your children.  The aquatics department overall brought in 304 toys!  PRO Club as a whole donated over 3000 toys! 

  • The Intermediate Tides/Waves group won for most toys donated from swim team – earning a pizza party during dryland next Monday, and forcing Coach Edilia to swim SO. MANY. YARDS!

Purchase options still exist

  • Reminder, we still have PRO Swimming stickers, PRO Swimming towels, Intrasquad t-shirts, and various other swag available for purchase.  Stop by the concierge office or check in with your coach to pick something up.

Holidays –

  • Monday January 19th – MLK day – practices occur as normal.

Volunteer Information –

As a reminder, there are opportunities for PARENTS to get involved with our team.  We are always looking for volunteers to start training as officials to help on deck.  We would love to work towards hosting a swim meet outside of our internal PRO Club meets but need a healthy base of trained volunteers to make that a reality.  Information below and on our website on how to get started.  If you have any specific questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Andrew Choy for any additional questions: [email protected]

Coat drive -

One of our very own swimmers reached out in the spirit of giving, to let us know he volunteers at Bellevue Youth Link, a youth volunteering organization sponsored by the city of Bellevue. They are collecting coats as part of a Kids Care Coat Drive.

  • We will have a bin set up in my office near the recreation pool and want to give you the opportunity to clean out your closets from new or gently used coats that are not needed to bless another family in need.
  • Past donations included more than 3500 coats donated to those in our local area.
  • Donations will go until January 30th at PRO Club!

Safe Sport – PRO Swimming is working towards being recognized as a SafeSport swim team within USA Swimming. The USA Swimming Safe Sport Club Recognition program allows a club to demonstrate its commitment to creating a healthy and positive environment free from abuse for all its members through the development and implementation of club governance measures, Safe Sport policies and reporting mechanisms, Safe Sport best practices and training to athletes and parents.

I wanted to forward on to you all the most recently shared 2026 U.S. Center for SafeSport Code we were sent located here, which will go into effect on January 1, 2026.

We have included links and resources on our website to support getting information shared and accessible.

What can you do to help?  EDUCATION

  • Education – The more you are aware and understand what a positive environment looks like, the more we can work as an entire club to maintain it collectively as a team.  There are 3 free courses on the USA swimming education page that you can take a look into for PARENTS, Youth ATHLETES, and our youngest ATHLETES. We encourage you to watch them individually and then share with your swimmers.

Sneak Peek

February – As a heads up, we do NOT take off any swim time during mid-winter break in February. It is important timing in swimming training before the end of Short Course season championships in March. 

  • Please feel FREE to travel as a family, as we also understand how important time off can be for your family.  If you are traveling during mid-winter break, just communicate with your coach directly.

March - March 30th – April 5th – We will have a 1-week break from all swimming.  This is the week in between the Regional/Sectional swim meets….and the start of our long course swim training.

  • Note this break does not line up with any school spring breaks. 😊  We will have regular practice during ALL Spring breaks that occur in April.  Again – completely understand if your family is traveling during this time.

 

Thank you for your support as we head into the new year.  2026 is already shaping up to be one for the books!

 

Erin Julius

[email protected]