Jumping right in: A swimmer at last - Gainesville Times

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Jumping right in: A swimmer at last

A novice finds success in the pool: I just swam

Times intern Audrey Williams, who is learning to swim at age 23, dog paddles Thursday at Frances Meadows Aquatic Center in Gainesville, keeping her head above water with the help of a foam swim noodle. - photo by NAT GURLEY

0718swim 1 — Times intern Audrey Williams, who is learning to swim at age 23, dog paddles Thursday at Frances Meadows Aquatic Center in Gainesville, keeping her head above water with the help of a foam swim noodle. - photo by NAT GURLEY

Until my adult swim lessons at the Frances Meadows Aquatic Center, there was no way I would go into a pool past my shoulders. Pools, beaches, lakes — they all scared me. Over the course of eight days, my swim lessons turned that fear into comfort.