It's easy to tell people my story. I've said it so many times that I have it rehearsed to the T. I lost my leg when I was six months to a congenital defect...etc. (If you want the rest of the story check out my biography at the bottom of this page. I really don't want to tell it again.) But one detail rarely shared is that when I moved back to the States from Germany I wanted to join the swim team. I was a good swimmer, even as a seven year old. I loved the water and the water seemed to love me. I could float like a buoy in the middle of a lake. I was doing back flips off the diving board with one leg when I was six. I can't do them anymore, but I could then. But the coach...well, I won't give you my real feelings about the coach, but basically he was a real piece of work. "Kelly will never be a good swimmer," he told my mom. That's what you get when someone doesn't want to take on a challenge or is afraid of the unknown. I was full of potential and everyone knew it.
But you know what? All I can say is thank you now. I set out to prove him wrong. Rather than kill my taste for swimming he fueled my drive to succeed. My goal is never to meet expectations, but rather to exceed expectations and then some.
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