The Peninsula Youth Athletic League (PYAL) swim team earned a 2nd Place Small Team award at the North Coast Summer Swim League (NCSSL) championship at the Fremont Rec Center in July. (Photo by Cassandra Belcher)

BY SHERI TRUSTY

MARBLEHEAD – Danbury Aquatics Supervisor Pam Starr led the Peninsula Youth Athletic League (PYAL) swim team through an extraordinary season this summer after leading the Danbury Lakers to a record-breaking season last year. The PYAL team walked away with a 2nd Place Small Team award at the North Coast Summer Swim League (NCSSL) championship at the Fremont Rec Center in July.

“I’ve been in this league close to 20 years and never once have I come out of it with an award this big,” Starr said.

During the school year, Starr coaches the Danbury swim team, which fosters exceptional athletes, but during the school’s summer break, Starr coaches PYAL, which includes athletes from around the country. This year’s league included about 50 kids from ages four to 18.

Danbury Aquatics Supervisor Pam Starr is making an impact in the Marblehead community and beyond with her dedication to youth and adult swimming. (Photo by Sheri Trusty)

“I have kids whose families have summer homes on Johnson’s Island and Lakeside. This year, I had kids from Florida, Oregon, and Indiana,” Starr said. “It’s cool for the kids because they make friends from all over. It’s a such a good mix. The big ones help the little ones, and I even had kids with special needs on the team this summer.”

Starr’s assistant coach, Halle Puffenberger, is a former Port Clinton High School state swimmer who trained with Starr beginning when she was very young.

“It’s come full circle,” Starr said.

The NCSSL championship win was based on the cumulative scores of the entire team.

The Danbury Aquatics staff are, from left, Sarah Kovarik, Pam Starr, Ashley Carolus, and Kelly Collins. Not shown are Randy Lehrer and Halle Puffenberger. (Photo by Cassandra Belcher)

“The whole team did this together. It was based on the whole team’s points, so the little kids matter as much as the big kids,” Starr said.

This year, PYAL is joining Sandusky Aquatics, a USA Swimming team led by Tommy Patterson that is open to youth swimmers across the area. Starr said the team currently has athletes from Danbury, Port Clinton, Sandusky, Margaretta, and Norwalk.

USA Swimming athletes compete in a 25-yard short course in winter and a 50-meter large course in the summer. The partnership will allow younger Danbury swimmers to compete in the winter.

“The USA Swimming team gives them the opportunity to swim with different kids and to do something different without having to drive far away,” Starr said. “It gives them the opportunity to experience how Olympians swim in a 50-meter pool.”

Danbury Aquatics Supervisor Pam Starr and Assistant Coach Halle Puffenberger at the Danbury pool. (Photo by Cassandra Belcher)

But for now, Starr is focusing on the upcoming swim seasons. The Danbury Middle School swim season starts mid-October, and high school begins in late October. Starr is anticipating a strong year led by seniors Ethan McDonald, Ally Clark, and Landon Funk.

But Starr needs help to give the athletes a great season and enhance public swim opportunities. The Danbury swim department needs paid lifeguards and swim and water aerobics instructors. Danbury Aquatics offers swim lessons, adult swim classes, and public open swim times. In addition to Starr and Puffenberger, the staff includes Sarah Kovarik, Ashley Carolus, Kelly Collins, and Randy Lehrer.

Starr is engaged in youth swimming all year long. No matter what team she is coaching, Starr’s focus is on the athletes.

“I just want the kids to have fun,” she said.