{"id":2043,"date":"2023-01-24T13:55:25","date_gmt":"2023-01-24T13:55:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/aldiatodayusa.com\/?p=2043"},"modified":"2023-01-24T13:55:25","modified_gmt":"2023-01-24T13:55:25","slug":"palm-bay-aquatic-center-instructor-credits-swimming-for-giving-her-new-focus-in-life-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/aldiatoday.com\/index.php\/2023\/01\/24\/palm-bay-aquatic-center-instructor-credits-swimming-for-giving-her-new-focus-in-life-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Palm Bay Aquatic Center instructor credits swimming for giving her new focus in life<\/strong>"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Jesika P. Millano<\/em><\/strong>
For Al D\u00eda Today<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

PALM BAY \u2013 Georgina \u2018Geo\u2019 Rodr\u00edguez discovered skating as a child and believed she was destined to be a professional skater.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fate, however, had other plans for her life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At age 16, a dog crossed Rodr\u00edguez\u2019s path as she skated, and, in the process of avoiding it, she broke her right knee. After a year in rehab, she had to leave the skating team at Club Atl\u00e9tico River Plate in Buenos Aires, Argentina.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That difficult experience led her to discover swimming, as she frequently swam for physical therapy to strengthen her leg.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It marked a new beginning for her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI had to reinvent myself,\u201d Rodr\u00edguez says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI grew in responsibility and discipline. In the midst of that uncertainty, swimming became my lifestyle. My recovery was not only physical but also mental because swimming helped me to mature on an athletic and personal level,\u201d she explains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNow I know that everything happens for a reason.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At age 20, Rodr\u00edguez was certified as a lifeguard for the Argentinian Red Cross and began her career as a swimming instructor. In addition to being a club team coach, she also worked with children with special needs and had dreams of having her own swimming club.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A little over two years ago, Rodr\u00edguez settled with her family in Palm Bay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy son had moved to the United States to study, so we decided to move to this country as well,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once settled, she successfully passed all of the necessary tests to obtain her license as a Water Safety Instructor (WSI) and become a certified lifeguard in this country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rodr\u00edguez was hired in mid-January 2021 as a swim coach and instructor at the Palm Bay Aquatic Center, which reopened to the public under strict biosecurity measures on Jan. 25 with a ribbon-cutting event.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Palm Bay pool was the first place I swam when I arrived in this country and, because of that, I am excited to be part of this team. Although the process of learning a new language as an adult is difficult, it is a challenge that I am happy to face,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rodr\u00edguez also gives private classes to children and young people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI am passionate about overcoming the challenges that teaching in a different language entails. Watching students blossom who once had a great fear of the water is the best reward,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere are also those who have had a negative experience with water and end up overcoming those obstacles and enjoying swimming. That is the most satisfying and rewarding thing for me. It is amazing to watch others achieve their dreams,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Palm Bay Aquatic Center is located at 420 Community College Parkway SE.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The spring hours came in effect on Saturday, March 29. The Palm Bay Aquatic Center is now open for Lap Swimming and Open Swimming. Lap swimming is Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 8 a.m. to 1p.m. and 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.; On Tuesday and Thursday the Lap swimming is from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. General swim hours are on Saturday from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. The Palm Bay Aquatic Center will be closed on Sundays.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Admission to the center is $4 per person. Veterans can swim for $1.50. Seniors 55+ swim for $2. Multi-visit passes are available for $40 for 12 swims. Veteran passes are $15 for 12 swims and Senior passes are available for $20 for 12 swims.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For more information, please call the Palm Bay Aquatic Center at (321) 952-2833 or email swim@palmbayflorida.org.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Jesika P. MillanoFor Al D\u00eda Today PALM BAY \u2013 Georgina \u2018Geo\u2019 Rodr\u00edguez discovered skating as a child and believed she was destined to be a professional skater. Fate, however, had other plans for her […]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2044,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30,35,37,38,45],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-2043","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-community","8":"category-education","9":"category-florida","10":"category-florida-travel","11":"category-jobs"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/aldiatoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/GEO-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/aldiatoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2043","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/aldiatoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/aldiatoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aldiatoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aldiatoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2043"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/aldiatoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2043\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aldiatoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2044"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/aldiatoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2043"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aldiatoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2043"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aldiatoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2043"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}