Edmund Fitzgerald 50-year Anniversary Swim Relay

I grew up on Lake Huron. One could rightfully assume my water skills would be close to Michael Phelps’ level, since I had easy access to the lake my entire childhood. But I was more of a dunker than a swimmer. I enjoyed the sun, rolled in the sand and floated on the water, but swimming was not in my genes.

When I moved to California, the ocean spoke to me and I learned to surf, swim and party at the beach as much as my twenty-something limited income allowed. I grew to appreciate water and the joy it brought to submerge. 

Upon returning to my hometown of Michigan after 20 plus years away, my parents had moved to a lake front house. Now I was on the lake instead of near it, and I embraced Lake Huron as only an older, single woman can.

I bought paddle boards and kayaks, floating devises and a lily pad. I ordered rash guards and board shorts before realizing if I waited until July I could get them at half price.

Instead of shredding old documents I had fire burning parties and raked the Petoskey stones off the sand. I bought enough Adirondack chairs for the entire neighborhood, and umbrellas to protect us from the now dangerous UV rays. When March rolled around, while the snow melted and the sky turned blue, I started setting up the beach for summer.

But then last summer, an old family friend, whom I had not seen in 40 years, brought her family from the UK to spend a week at the beach. Sheila Fitzgerald was my age. Her mom and my mom were best friends their entire life, so when her mom Jean came back to visit Port Huron, Sheila and I were thrust together at an early age with an expectation to become best friends, just like them.

Sheila is descendant from the Edmund Fitzgerald clan, the ship builder whose namesake freighter sank in Lake Superior back in 1975. Sheila is a wise old soul, just like her mother. One cannot help but be drawn to her energy. As she raised her family of girls, with her husband Brian, outside of the US and our great lake, Sheila developed a true passion for swimming.

So, when she arrived last summer, after hugs and a quick catch-up, she ran down to the lake for a dip. She didn’t seem bothered with the icy water, dove in and began her free style.  As she plunged and frolicked, expressing her sheer delight at returning to the lake where her mother grew up on, I wanted to find that passion for swimming that I had in California.

She showed her children the beauty of the lake as opposed to an ocean. All in their mid-twenties, the young women embraced our lake too. They borrowed a guitar and nightly bon fires with sing along occurred in their rented cabin just a few houses down from mine.

Sheila received a text during their stay about the Edmund Fitzgerald Memorial Swim commemorating the 50-year anniversary that the freighter and its 29 sailors sank, happening in the summer of 2025. We were both juniors in high school then, so the devastating news did not make as lasting an impression on m; the Fitzgerald family was greatly affected by the tragedy.

Sheila signed up for the event then ran down to my house to share the information with me. By then the 16th leg of the swim was full, so I put my name on a waiting list and gave her a hug of congratulations. What a fun endeavor she had signed up for.

Next time: What is the Edmund Fitzgerald freighter and what happened to it.

Find out more at www.edmundfitzgeraldswim.org