As an adult, Mr. Ellis became a math teacher and also dedicated himself to swimming. After he graduated from college, he accepted a job at a city recreation center in West Philadelphia. He wanted to give back to the community. His mission was to get boys off the streets and out of gangs. He taught them how to swim and helped them start thinking of the world beyond their neighborhood. Many took the next step: They signed up for Mr. Ellis’s swim team. The team was considered an underdog. As a sport, swimming typically has attracted white children from suburban homes who have easier access to modern swimming pools. Their families also can afford the expenses for team dues and travel. Mr. Ellis’s teams have drawn predominantly inner-city children who are African-American. For years, his teams practiced in a pool that didn’t have heat or showers. Bullets had left marks on the building. Mr. Ellis trained his swimmers into champions. Many clocked among the fastest times in the country in their age groups. Some even have represented the United States in international swim meets. One just missed making the U.S. Olympic team. Jim Ellis Opening up the world through swimming The first swimming experience for Jim Ellis did not go well. He was 7. His father put him in a boat, took him out onto a lake, and then threw him in the water. He was told to swim. “I didn’t drown, but it convinced my mother that it was not the way to learn how to swim,” Mr. Ellis says. So she suggested that he take lessons at the YMCA. Despite the shaky start, Mr. Ellis has been in and around water ever since then. In fact, he built such an impressive career as a swimming coach that Hollywood made a movie based on his life. The 2007 movie, Pride, starred Terrence Howard and Bernie Mac. Says Mr. Ellis, “My parents told me to follow my passion and dare to be different.” He got his first taste of coaching at Cheyney University. The college had assigned the football coach to run the swim team. He did not have any experience. So Mr. Ellis, who was a swim team member, decided to help coach his teammates. 6 Illustration by Valerie Nogueda, Cole Manor Healthy Times