Today we’d like to introduce you to Marla Hunter.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Wow! This journey has been a dream come true. This company has it’s beginning from 1985 when my mum put me in swim lessons at the local YMCA. Since then I, Coach Marla, have always been swimming – swim teams and synchronized swimming.
In the Spring of 1995, I began the journey of becoming a certified lifeguard and swim instructor and then got a job at the YMCA where I took my first lessons in 1985. It was in 1995 that I noticed something… I was 1 of 3 Blacks that worked in the pool area and the majority of the people that I taught did not look like me.
I went on a mission. My mission was to show that ANYONE could learn how to swim no matter their race, color, and cultural background. This is when I coined Live. Love. Swim! I continued to teach at the local YMCAs and Jewish Community Centers, but I realized that I had to reach out to those who may not be able to afford the membership of these facilities.
This is when Live. Love. Swim!, LLC became “Your source for at-home swimming lessons”. I have a PASSION for educating and swimming. With these passions Live. Love. Swim!, LLC became the provider of private swim lessons and semi-private swimming lessons for infants, children, and adults not just in the United States, but globally (UK, China, and Nigeria).
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
This road has had its ups and downs.
I never had a Black swim coach growing up. So I never saw someone that looked like my teaching and/or coaching swimming. A LOT of the times when I coach at well knows organizations, I’m either the only Black person or 1 out of maybe 3-4.
My goal is to show diversity within aquatics and at times I get negative feedback on this.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Live. Love. Swim!, LLC?
Live. Love. Swim!, LLC is a mobile + global swim organization.
My company provides private (One on one lessons with the participant), semi-private (Class instruction for two participants who are similar in age and swim ability.), and group lessons (Swim lessons for 3-4 participants who are similar in age and/or swim ability.) Lessons are given for any age and any ability: Parent/Tot Classes (2 months – 35 months), Preschool Classes (3-5 years), Youth Classes (6-15 years), and Technique Clinic + Adult Classes (16 + yrs).
What sets me apart from others is that I coach and have coached in the continental USA and internationally. Where: Tennessee, Florida, California, the DMV, China, Nigeria, the UAE, and the UK. What I am most proud about is that I have been able to take my love for swimming with me wherever I go and help others to develop that love for it as well.
Are there any books, apps, podcasts, or blogs that help you do your best?
Episode 46: Swimming While Black with Jamal Hill | The End of Sports Podcast – https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-46-swimming-while-black-with-jamal-hill/id1507693741?i=1000491641609.
The SwimSwam Podcast | SwimSwam.
– https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-swimswam-podcast/id1467108547.
Contact Info:
- Email: info@liveloveswimllc.com
- Website: www.liveloveswimllc.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/liveloveswimllc/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LiveLoveSwim
- Other: https://www.google.com/search?q=Live.+Love.+Swim!,+LLC
