She’s found the fountain of youth

by Lisa Crutchfiield

Ruth Good didn’t learn to swim until her mid 30s. Since then, she’s been making up for lost time.
More than 60 years after taking her first plunge in the pool, she’s a fixture on the exercise circuit at ACAC Fitness & Wellness Center in Midlothian, not only on the swim team, but also in the yoga studio. “I’ve always liked to be active,” she says.
Good is the inspiration for a lot of other members to stay active, too. “I can remember days when I’d get up and something would hurt and I wouldn’t want to go,” says swimming teammate John O’Brion. “Then I’d remember that Ruth would be there and I’d go.”
Good, a petite woman of 89, was honored late last year by ACAC. A bench outside the club entrance now bears a small plaque reading, “In Honor of Ruth S. Good. For her dedication to Fitness and Wellness 2009.”
The bench matches an adjacent one dedicated to her late husband, Warren F. Good; it’s a spot where he often could be found waiting for his wife to pick him up.
At the dedication ceremony, Ruth Good also received a journal filled with memories and wishes from club members and staff, many of whom were on hand for the event.
“She makes us all laugh and genuinely brightens the day of anyone she comes in contact with, most of whom she knows by name,” says Stephanie Maddox, marketing coordinator for ACAC. “She is truly what you would call an inspiration.”
Good grew up on a farm in rural Virginia and like many her age, did not take swimming lessons though she enjoyed the occasional splash in the river. But when her three children started to swim, daughter Judy encouraged Good to take lessons, too.
She finally jumped in and found she loved the sport. She progressed through the courses, collecting more badges and cards from the Red Cross with each new set of skills acquired.As her family moved around, she always looked for a nearby pool. Good eventually began to compete, swimming with Masters and the Senior Olympics programs, where she has qualified for and placed on the national level.
Freestyle is her best stroke, she says. “But I don’t dive, and that makes relays tough.”
Good jokes that she has her own lane for swim practice at the ACAC pool, where she’s been a member for 25 years. Since she gave up driving a few months ago, getting to practice can be a challenge, but she’s determined to continue.
After all, she says, swimming has been her fountain of youth.
And it’s also good motivation for younger generations of ACAC members.
“I just walked past her as she headed to the pool with a huge smile son her face and let me tell you, at 89 years of age, she looks pretty darn fabulous in that swim suit,” says Maddox.