Wave 2022 End of Year Letter

Elizabeth Ordonez

Dear Swim Team Members and Families,

Thank you to everyone for creating a wonderful Splashfest environment! It takes a team effort to successfully host a swim meet, and we appreciate all your contributions. As the year ends, I want to take a moment to reflect on the past year and all that we have accomplished as a team and provide a look forward to an exciting year ahead. Despite the many changes and challenges, we have persevered and continued to improve and grow as a team.

In the past year, our team has seen numerous successes, both in and out of the pool. Our swimmers have broken personal bests and team records, and we have had several top finishers at meets and competitions. We are incredibly proud of all the hard work and dedication our swimmers have put in honing their craft.

Thank you to all the coaches and parents that support our team and make it possible for us to continue to thrive. Your unwavering support and commitment have been invaluable, and we are grateful for all that you do.

We are excited for all that the new year will bring, and we will continue to work hard to provide the foundation for the swimmers to find success and personal growth.

All our success is not possible without the most important people on the team – the swimmers and coaches. Let’s begin with the swimmers. The following is our swimmer breakdown by group:

Bronze 1 – 23 swimmers

Bronze 2 – 25 swimmers

Silver – 33 swimmers

Gold – 27 swimmers

Senior – 14 swimmers

In 2019, prior to COVID, our breakdown was as follows (we had a 150-swimmer limit):

Bronze 1 – 10 swimmers

Bronze 2 – 14 swimmers

Silver 1 – 21 swimmers

Silver 2 – 16 swimmers

Gold 1 – 13 swimmers

Gold 2 – 20 swimmers

Senior – 39 swimmers

Senior National – 14 swimmers

We currently have 122 swimmers versus 147 swimmers pre-COVID. However, our numbers have grown significantly in just the last year, and we continue to grow. Our swimmer mix has changed pre- and post-COVID as well. We currently have more younger swimmers than previously as COVID made it a challenge for many swimmers across the state to continue developing to the next level. We look forward to filling out the senior group as our younger swimmers progress in the years ahead.

That progression will be led by our incredible coaching staff that provides a fun and challenging environment for our swimmers. As you can see below, our coaching staff is second to none!

Jamie Schnurer – Head Coach. Jamie has guided our team through many changes the past two years, and we could not be more thankful. She keeps the swimmers engaged and reminds us that the swimmers are our most important priority. Jamie swam at Lehigh University and graduated from UW-Madison. She demonstrates the motto Handle Hard Better as she coached the Wave, Appleton North high school, and was a teacher all while raising her daughters with her husband and providing a source of leadership and stability for many swimmers. We are so thankful for what Jamie has provided the team that anything written here would not do it justice.
Ryan Knox-Leonard – Incoming Head Coach. Ryan will be on deck full-time starting January 18. However, you will most likely see him at the pool on and off starting this week. Ryan and his wife Sydney are moving from Marquette, Michigan, where Ryan coached the Wildcat Aquatics Club. He is originally from Newcastle, Australia. Ryan swam for Northern Michigan University where he was a six-time All-American and a three-year scholar All-American. Ryan will be at the Neenah pool this Monday, December 19 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. and at the Appleton North pool on Wednesday, December 21 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. to meet and greet any interested parents. Please give Ryan a big welcome when you see him on deck!
Jamie and Ryan will coach together through the conclusion of the winter season to ease the transition for coaches, swimmers, and parents.
Carolina Artacho – Gold Lead Coach. Ryan introduced us to Carolina and what a find she has been! Carolina is from Sao Paulo, Brazil, where she became a professional swimmer at 16. She also swam at Northern Michigan University for four years. Her knowledge, joy of the sport, and connection with the swimmers is evident every time she walks on pool deck.
Ruthe Zimmerman – Silver Lead Coach/Head Age Group Coach (soon to be Silver 2 Lead Coach/Head Age Group Coach). Ruthe has been a rock for the Wave, and we would not be where we are today without her. After finishing her competitive career at UWGB and UW-Milwaukee, Ruthe now has over 20 years coaching experience and provides many invaluable resources to the team. She not only coaches, but she also manages the website, pool and coaching schedules, and a multitude of other tasks. Like Jamie, anything written here would not express our gratitude to Ruthe.
Grace Pelot – Silver 1 lead coach starting January. Grace is Wave alum swimmer, and we are excited to have her back on deck!
Anita VandenBurgt – Bronze Lead Coach. You cannot become a successful swimmer without having a teacher giving you the foundation to be successful. Anita has provided that foundation to countless swimmers over the years. Anita provided our swimmers a ballast throughout COVID and beyond to help them grow as athletes and people. Anita has one daughter swimming at UW-Milwaukee and a son heavily involved in high school athletics, and she has decided this will be her last season coaching the Wave. We cannot thank Anita enough for what she has done for the Wave. While we are lucky she will be on deck for a while, please cherish the remaining time we have with her at the Wave.
Dan Frase – soon to be Bronze 1 and 2 Lead Coach. We are so fortunate to have Dan become our new Bronze Lead Coach. Dan began swimming at five-years old and finished his competitive career at Bradley University where he specialized in distance events. Dan and his wife have five wonderful children which definitely gives him the patience required to lead our energetic young swimmers.

Our lead coaches are supported by the following fabulous deck coaches:

Angela Farrell
Kameron Neumann
Kim Bjork
Kaitlyn Fox
Chris Bouressa
Pete Coons
Grace Flanagan (seasonal)
Brynn Malcomson (seasonal)

More information about our coaches can found on our team website.

We have also expanded our training outside of the pool with Swimstrong Dryland and Atlas Strength and Wellness. Swimstrong is a nationally recognized dryland program providing strength, flexibility, nutrition, and leadership training for our athletes. We are incredibly fortunate to have David and Kaitlyn Beiser, owners of Atlas Strength and Wellness, be our onsite experts to implement our dryland program for our gold and senior swimmers. Katie Loken, our in-house expert, provides this same guidance to our silver swimmers. It is quite a dryland team!

There are multiple ways we can all help the team move forward in 2023. To begin, please watch for guidance on how to complete the SafeSport training. There have been many changes at USA Swimming, and Andy Skorr and Katie Loken have spent countless hours working through the process to ensure it is smooth for everyone. Most importantly, SafeSport training will help keep all our children safe, and it will also provide our club recognition.

Next, we need more officials. If you are interested in learning about becoming an official, please contact Joe Scoresby at [email protected] or Brian Flanagan at [email protected]. Continuing on, we always welcome volunteers and advice. Please contact any of the board members or coaches listed on our website if you would like to volunteer or have ideas to help the team. Finally, support and cheer on our coaches and swimmers!

It has been a great year and an exciting one to come. Thank you for all you do to help make the Wave a great team for our swimmers.

Go Wave!

Brian Flanagan, Fox Valley Wave President