IN THE
SWIM OF
THINGS PERRY MAXWELL RULES THE WATER
by BETH A. KLAHRE photo by ARIS HARDING
10
WILMA
NOVEMBER 2021
P
ERRY MAXWELL is at her best when she’s in the water. She’s been swimming competitively since she was eight years old when she watched other kids compete at her neighborhood Long Island, New York, swim club. She asked her mom if she could try it. And the rest, as they say, is history. For the past eighteen years, Maxwell has been a coach for the Masters Swim program of the Cape Fear Aquatic Club at the YMCA of Southeastern
North Carolina. Masters Swim is a program for all levels of swimmers from beginners to seasoned competitive triathletes, lap swimmers, swimmers who want a group workout, and those swimming to live a healthy lifestyle. Some members, ranging in age from their twenties to seventies, swim for fun while others swim competitively. “I grew up swimming. It was my passion,” Maxwell recalls. “I enjoyed the ability to be my own determining factor on my success. Swimming met my need to challenge myself, do the hard work, and ultimately see the results.” Maxwell has never been afraid of the hard work. At age eight she was swimming three times per week. By age ten it was five days per week, and by age twelve it was twice daily coupled with twice-weekly weight lifting. After being scouted by college recruiters and receiving over a hundred letters and full scholarship offers from thirty universities including Harvard, Yale, Brown, and Princeton, she choose North Carolina State University. She majored in recreation administration and program planning. Maxwell swam every morning before classes, again in the evening, lifted weights three days per week, and spent Sundays in “psych sessions” setting goals. “I liked working hard, and I liked the sense of belonging and camaraderie with the team,” she says. Maxwell specialized in the 400-, 800-, and 1,500-meter distance freestyle, 200-meter butterfly, and 400-meter individual medley races. In 1983, she swam in the United States Swimming National Championships where she made the qualifying time to participate in the Olympic Trials the following year in the 800-meter distance freestyle race. Swimming opened many doors for Maxwell. Before graduation, she was recruited by Procter & Gamble (P&G) for a sales position. She landed in the management track and lived in four states in eighteen months. After two years at P&G, she purchased a home in Wilmington, a city she knew well
