In June, this LSS at Meridian Village resident competed in the 20th anniversary National Senior Games in Louisville, Kentucky, where she was recognized as one of the athletes to open the first games in 1987. At the age of 90, she distinguished herself among 12,000 senior athletes, taking gold in the 500 meter freestyle (her event of choice) and silver in the 100 meter backstroke.

Her wins added two more honors to her already-overstuffed trophy case, which holds more than 750 medals, four Illinois State High Point Awards, a trophy from the YMCA for swimming 3,500 miles in competition and a Physical Fitness Award from the governor of Illinois.

On her doctor’s orders, Glenda took up swimming at the age of 67 after being diagnosed with a painful form of diverticulosis. “I wasn’t a swimmer,” she admits. “I could barely get to the far end of the pool. But as the years went by, my pain diminished, and it turned out I was getting pretty good at it.” She got her big break in 1984 at the Southwest Illinois Regional Olympics; three years later, she was competing in the very first national games, held in her hometown of St. Louis.                           

It hasn’t always been smooth sailing for Glenda, of course. One year, she broke her foot just three weeks before nationals, but she was determined not to let that stop her.

“When the doctor took the boot off,” she recalls, “he told me he didn’t think I should go. ‘How are you going to get into the pool when you’re in a walker?’ he asked. I told him, ‘Well, I’ll jump in.’ So he asked, ‘How are you going to get out of the pool?’And I told him, ‘Hey, this is nationals! That’s their problem!’”

“I’ve been designated a role model,” she said. “I’ll never forget this year’s Olympics. I walked into the locker room with my gold medal, and people just flocked around me, asking for my autograph. They told me I’m an inspiration. Well, if I am, I couldn’t have done it alone. You have to have people around to encourage you. My husband Claude is my champion. I’m sure it wasn’t fun driving me back and forth to the 10 states I’ve competed in, but he’s always been behind me, and I appreciate and love him for that.”

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