Brantford sisters open swimming school in a Paris plaza

One might wonder how it’s possible to have an in-ground pool inside a strip mall.

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It’s a dream come true for sisters Julia and Jessica Surette of Brantford, who opened Brave Waves Swimming School early in June, inside the Arlington Commons plaza on Rest Acres Road in Paris.

“We talked to the landlord, Mr. (Peter) Vicano and told him we have this great idea that’s been done plenty of times in the US and in Canada as well,” explained Julia. “We showed him our business plan. . . . and he said he was on board.”

“We want to be here for a long time,” added Jessica. “We promised him we’d be here forever.”

In 2011, the sisters began offering swimming lessons in their Brantford backyard pool to earn university tuition and grew enough to provide summer jobs for 17 instructors.

A three-year relocation in 2021 to the pool at the Five Oaks Retreat Centre in Paris was part of the process of realizing their dream.

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The school now has 800 students enrolled in its first session, and with more lessons being added in July it will have about 1,300 students per week.

Since its inception, Brave Waves has had neurodiverse and disabled children as a segment of their clientele.

“In our traditional program it’s two students per instructor which allows students with neurodiversities to go through traditional programming,” said Julia. “Our adapted programming allows for one-on-one instruction.”

Class settings can be altered to provide additional resources, along with different settings and levels of stimulus or attention.

“It’s about the learning needs of the student, and how we can meet them,” said Jessica.

The sisters were competitive swimmers throughout their childhood and became lifeguards at the time in their life when they began to think about university.

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“Our parents encouraged us, saying ‘if you want to go to university, let’s make this dream happen,’” Jessica recalled. “You have to work for it. Our mom and aunt are teachers, so they helped us develop the pedagogy and teaching style.”

Julia noted that the pandemic was a turning point for them, when they were invited to a virtual conference for the biggest swim providers in Canada. The sisters were astonished to learn that online data showed they provided the most swimming lessons between London and Toronto.

“It was a learning opportunity, that there are people who do this as a career, have pools in plazas, and run this year-round,” Julia shared. “We went to the US Swim School Association conference in Arizona and realized this was a real thing. We knew the community really needed it desperately.

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“We get to provide a lifesaving skill to the community, and get to go to work, have fun, and love what we do every single day.”

The sisters are both juggling two careers at the moment.

Julia studied vocal performance – opera at McGill University and the Royal Academy of Music in London, England.

“I’m open to gigs all the time but my energy right now is focused on the pool,” said Julia.

Meantime, Jessica studied international development at McGill and is currently working on her master’s in environmental management at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia. She hopes to work with the Canadian Swim School Alliance to bring knowledge, skills, and resources to help poos be more sustainable and better for the environment and community.

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An affiliate of the Lifesaving Society of Canada that provides swimming certification, the Brave Waves program is based on any kind of water for any reason.

“Any water for any reason means we want to make a smart swimmer and a strong swimmer,” Jessica noted. “You need to be able to discern whether it’s safe or whether it can escalate. We want to teach everything that people may ever need to know so they can live safely for as long as possible.”

A seating area with large glass panels allows parents to watch their children’s lessons take place.

Rachel Robitaille said she likes how Brave Waves accommodates her four children at once.

“I actually see their skills improving week by week. “I’m seeing significant improvement on a steady basis,” Robitaille observed. “We have done lessons previously at other facilities in Brantford, but I didn’t see the progression in skills that I see here.”

Julia and Jessica’s mother, Nita Surette, recently retired from teaching and works the front desk.

“She loves to talk to parents about the swim journey and the life journey,” said Julia. “She’s always the one who said we are part of a village, and everyone in the community helps raise a child. It’s surprising how many people walk through the door and say, ‘Oh, it’s a family business.’ It is a home-grown, local business.”

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