‘The guy you want in your child’s life’: Beloved Butte YMCA swim coach hangs up his cap

He’s stern. He’s kind. He’s patient. He’s demanding.

He understands kids and looks them square in the eye. He tags them with nicknames.

Those descriptions of outgoing coach John Thurmond seemingly fit more snugly than a latex swim cap.

Thurmond, 57, is wrapping up his tenure as coach of the Riptides swim team at the Butte Family YMCA. The Butte native started volunteering eight years ago as a swim official and became coach six years ago.

Vaia Errett lives in Whitehall. Her daughter, Daphne, is a swim team member and Vaia is a John Thurmond fan.

“He’s the guy you want as a fixture in your child’s life,” she said. “He knows how to talk to the kids.  He demands work from them. The pool is an echoey place, but he has a big voice and he’s direct.  He’s patient and he’s calm and he understands each kid.”

Stephanie Feist, CEO of the Butte Family YMCA, also praised Thurmond.

"John has been a key part of youth development through the Butte Family YMCA Riptide swim club and also assisting with the Butte High School swim team for several years,” Feist said. “He pushes the swimmers to improve their times by practicing well and has always helped to ensure our pool competition systems are ready for numerous swim meets each season.

“Most importantly, he is helping youth within our community become better versions of themselves inside and outside of the aquatics centers they swim," she added.

A youthful John Thurmond and siblings walked easily from their Longfellow neighborhood for swim lessons at Stodden Park.

His older brothers and sisters swam competitively with the Butte Tarpons. His tenure with the team was brief.

He did not take to swimming like a seal or a river otter.

“I didn’t get into swimming as much as I wish I would have,” Thurmond said. “I always liked being outdoors, riding a bike. Maybe that took precedence.”

Thurmond recalled those boyhood days during a recent interview at the Butte Family YMCA. He spoke a few days before the Y hosted a swim meet that swarmed the place with the cacophonous din of youthful energy, along with legions of folding chairs filled by parents whose expressions ranged from exuberant to resigned and a remarkably diverse array of snack foods.

Swim meets are loud and long, and swimmers burn calories like cordwood.

John was one of nine children born to Paul and Anne Thurmond. Paul worked as a pilot for Montana Power and Anne was a registered nurse.

John graduated from Butte Central High School in 1986 and then from Montana Tech with a degree in computer science.

He works for NorthWestern Energy.

Thurmond found his way back to the world of swimming the way many parents do — through the interests and aptitudes of a child, in this case daughter Olivia.

“My daughter always loved the water,” he said. “And then she wanted to do swim team competitive racing.”

Thurmond recognized that the Y did not have a team official and set out to learn the ropes.

“Truly, I didn’t understand the ins and outs of swimming, the techniques, so I found a way to support my daughter and also be more informed,” he said.

Thurmond earned the required certifications and the more he learned about swimming the more captivated he became.

“I got fascinated about those swimmers who were really good and had really good technique,” he said. “You could see it, and it's like, you could just see kids who had the technique and had coaching that they were able to apply, and they were really good swimmers.”

As an official, Thurmond evaluated the correct execution of four strokes: freestyle, butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke.

He said he liked being an official whose job it was to observe swimmers, not critique them. When he called an infraction, it could be a key learning experience for swimmers and coaches, he said.

“Early on, sometimes you felt bad disqualifying little kids,” Thurmond said. “You know, it's kind of like being the breaker of dreams. But at the same time, you're helping that coach teach their swimmers what they're doing wrong.”

In 2018, encouraged by the Y’s aquatics director and a fellow official, Thurmond became head coach of the Riptides team. He refined the observational skills developed as an official.

“If you can see it, you can teach it,” he said.

At the Butte Family YMCA, Thurmond has coached kids ranging in age from 7 to 18.

Errett is grateful for his work with her daughter and her daughter’s teammates.

“He pays attention and he tracks their improvements, each individual kid, week to week, meet to meet, year to year,” she said. “He sees what they need to swim better and he knows how they need to hear it.

“The kids look up to him.  He’s a big guy on the deck,” she said. “But he kneels down, he looks them in the eye, he tweaks their dive or their pull or their turn, he shows them where their arms should be. He praises them and sends them off with a chuckle or a smile.”

Swim team member Daphne Errett, 8, offered her view of Coach Thurmond, who called her Speedball.

“I think he’s nice,” she said. “And hard working. And he helps everyone individually with their problems.”

Thurmond said the team philosophy for the Riptides team is safety first, followed by fun, followed by competition.

He acknowledged swimming can be strenuous. It’s even harder when technique is off. Humanity’s distant ancestors might have emerged from the sea but modern humans need a little coaching to swim instead of sink.

“If you really don’t know how to swim or hold a horizontal body position, you’re always fighting water,” Thurmond said. “It wears you out.”

By all accounts, the competitive swim program has grown dramatically at the Butte Family YMCA during Thurmond’s tenure as head coach. He said his fellow coaches, Skyla Renz and Tricia Zigmund, have helped foster and manage the growth.

“Skyla is one reason I stayed coaching,” Thurmond said.

He said he believes the program grew through word-of-mouth.

“Parents were really supportive and encouraged friends and family to try the program,” Thurmond said. “I think word spread that, hey, it’s a good program for your kids. It’s a safe place to learn how to swim. And if you really want to move on as a swimmer, this is a good program.”

“I’ll miss the kids, their smiles, their laughter,” he said. “They’ve made me a better person. I sometimes question who got more out of this, me or them?”

He worked with kids who initially struggled to swim but persevered.

“These are really, really good, competitive swimmers today,” Thurmond said. “It’s so rewarding. It inspires you as a coach. I mean, if that doesn’t inspire you, I don’t know why you’re doing it.”

He said he learned patience, he learned how to listen more deeply and he learned the importance of admitting mistakes.

Thurmond said he plans to retain his credentials for officiating and coaching and will be available when needed to help the team.

Errett said youthful swimmers trust Thurmond.

“They respond to him,” she said. “And they’re better for it.  Not just better athletes. They come home as more secure humans.”