The Franciscan Sisters of Little Falls shared a reflection on July 8 from a woman who discovered a life-altering passion when she least expected it. 

“Early in 1979, my friend Char Stumpf asked if I was interested in swimming at the new health club recently opened at St. Francis,” Jackie Doty wrote. “Once in that water, it was love at first splash. This was the year I turned 39.”

After a time, Doty began to participate in a more involved way, taking a Water Safety Instructors course so that she could teach both adults and children. Doty was so involved in the swimming programs that she was approached by Sister Judine Cassidy in 1985 to be offered the director position, which she eagerly accepted. 

Jackie Doty | https://www.fslf.org/

“Larry Engholm came on as the head of a new and reorganized system,” Doty wrote. “I worked with Larry to assess the needs and upgrades necessary to enhance St. Francis Health and Recreation Center, as it was then named. With the aid and approval of the board of directors, we began to add and upgrade equipment and amenities to create a first-class workout environment including treadmills, stair steppers, weight room, etc., plus pool upgrades. It was Larry’s idea to build a racquetball court and add a hot tub, both very popular with our clientele.”

The center has continued to improve over time and it could not have been accomplished without the hard work of so many individuals who work at the center. 

“I can’t remember them all, but I loved each one as they shared with me tales about their lives and occasional angst,” Doty wrote. 

Doty retired in 1997 but she did not say goodbye to the center. 

“I didn’t actually say goodbye because that good old pool had cast a lasting spell on me, so as often as possible I answered the siren call that only a swimmer can hear,” Doty wrote. 

Despite the recent closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the St. Francis Health and Wellness Center has reopened with new guidelines to protect those who are using the facility. 

“Time flies when one is swimming laps,” Doty wrote. “In the words of Saint Seraphim of Sarov, ‘Swim often and you will feel on earth like the fish in the water.’”