By Maurice Emery

ROANOKE RAPIDS, NC – Most people would not even dream of swimming 73 laps in the Roanoke Rapids Aquatic Center if they had a year that matched Don Chartier’s, but then again few people have the mental discipline and zest for life that Don has.
By all accounts Don could have skipped this year’s annual swim. After all when he was seventy in 2003 he proved he could swim his age. He did it again when he turned 71, and 72. So everyone knew he could do it. But this years swim was a special one for Don. He has had a difficult year health wise with cancer in January, then chemotherapy treatments; a hernia operation less that nine-days ago and another hospitalization in early December. So he swam last Friday for two reasons one was a personal accomplishment, the other was - according to him – he told so many people that he had to live up to his word or he would never hear the end of it.
On hand for the swim were some very important people in Don’s life. His wife Jane, his daughter, Dorene and her husband Brad Shasteen. Dorene and Brad drove from Gainsville, TX to be with her dad. They had planned to be here for Christmas then they came a day earlier. Dorene was the record keeper. She was also a very proud daughter. She related that her dad has always been very active.
The swim started at 9 a.m.. Doniphan Browder, Aquatic Supervisor for the Center was on hand as an unrelated witness. Utilizing the breast stroke Don completed his first thirty laps by 9:36 a.m. He was ahead of schedule. As people from the aquacise class, the one Jane is a member of, looked on Don kept up his pace.
By 10:19 a.m. he was at sixty laps and still going smoothly. Don has told me several times that it was because of his exercise regimen that he was able to heal so quickly from all he has been through. He was now proving it lap by lap. Reporters from the local daily paper came by, another weekly reporter came by and a lady from WNVN-TV dropped in to check up on how he was doing.
Other swimmers came, exercised and left as Don swam on and on in this well cared for well-managed facility. Conversation for those watching him swim ranged from what he had for breakfast, oatmeal, to what he had for dinner last night – a high carb meal of spaghetti was mentioned, but we weren’t sure if it was what he had eaten or what a person about to perform such a feat should have eaten.
“Ten laps to go,” Dorene called out. As the last ten laps went by one by one the people around the pool paid more and more attention to the swimmer about to strike a positive blow for all seniors. As he kept swimming they talked about how Don still found time to work for Warren County Habitat for Humanity and participate in the Relay for Life walk earlier this year. In fact the AARP team, which he was a part of was the only team to keep walkers on the track throughout the entire night. (Don told me that he really didn’t do much this year and that without the help of others they would have never succeeded.)
“Five laps to go,” Dorene shouted. Jane talked about how Don started this annual swimming marathon as a result of him going to the pool with her. Jane would do her aquacise routine and he would swim. For a goal oriented person like Don, just swimming back and forth did not have much to offer. So he decided that he needed a goal. Why not swim my age he asked himself, so an idea was born and a goal set.
“One more lap to go,” Dorene exclaimed with an excited voice that said he’s going to make his goal. It was like shooting a starting gun. Don immediately switched from the breast stoke to the crawl. His last lap was his fastest lap. As he approached the finish line the small crowd started clapping. Everyone there knew they had witnessed something special. As Don completed his goal, using humor as always, he poked his head over the side of the pool and stated, “God, am I glad I’m not 74.”
Seventy-three laps, ninety five minutes, 2,482 strokes – goal completed. As he stood in the water, his arms raised, and his breathing almost immediately back to normal, you realized that he was in as good a shape as anyone could of any age could be.
Within minutes, Jane bent over and kissed him on top of his head and congratulated him. He then got out of the water and asked, “are we going to Disneyland?”
While he was standing next to his score sheet I asked Jane if she had any comments. “It was great he wanted to do it and he did,” she stated.
Don has said time and again he did not want to overplay what he had been through, but he did want to let people know the advantage of exercise. For him it has been a great advantage. He and his doctors agree that it was because he was in such great shape that he was able to overcome all he has.
He did offer one insight on his fight with cancer. In talking about his efforts to raise money for Relay for Life Don stated “The money that has gone into research for cancer saved my life.” “The treatment I had did not exist five years ago,” he continued.
We learned on Saturday that after Don completed his historic swim he spent the rest of the day shopping and enjoying his family. He also slept good he told us. It appears that for Don swimming 73 laps in the morning is all in a days work.