Adam Baxter BEM (1923-2011)

Saturday, 10 December 2011 11:48

Adam Baxter BEM (1923-2011)

It is with deep regret that I have to inform you of the death of one of the club’s longest serving members, Adam Baxter, who passed away on the morning of 6th December 2011 aged  88.

This is the loss of one of the club’s most stalwart servants, being involved with the club as a swimmer from the age of 11. In later years Adam qualified both as a teacher and a coach, plus devoting his considerable energy as an Executive Committee member, Honorary Secretary and President, covering decades of service. Additionally, he was a member on the Yorkshire Swimming Board.

Adam joined the RAF at the age of 18 and after his service was concluded he eventually settled on joining the Police Force in 1947. During his time with the Police, Adam was awarded the BEM (British Empire Medal) for his services to the community and for taking the Police Life Saving Team through to the National Championships.

Sport was a real passion for Adam and he won many medals for football, tennis & running.

In 1954, Adam and Pat met and married the following year. Their daughter, Suzanne, followed in the family sporting tradition, gaining international honours as a swimmer for both Scotland and Great Britain.

When Adam retired from the Police Force, their loss was very much YCBC’s gain. It was at this point that Adam’s coaching took off. Always a volunteer coach and never stinting in his time commitment, he was instrumental in ensuring a steady stream of competitive swimming excellence for the club. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Adam’s approach was ‘old school’. He ensured discipline in his charges, firm but always fair yet with room to enjoy themselves along the way. As a ‘side line’ almost, Adam maintained the outdoor swimming pool at Fulford School. Many of the club’s younger swimmers had the benefit of extra swimming coaching in outdoor conditions during the summer months through courses that he ran. I can confirm that they caused great comment from the participants as they enjoyed the less user-friendly conditions that often come with an English summer. None-the-less, they all came back for more.

For a number of years, Adam and Pat went on winter holiday to Sri Lanka. This was an opportunity to get away from the routine of everyday life and have a change. In this case, the change appeared to be coaching Sri Lankan children instead of those of the city of York!

It is my privilege to have succeeded Adam as Club President and it is my honour to write this short obituary of a man to whom we owe a huge debt of gratitude. ‘We’ in this context is not just the current club membership, but the thousands of swimmers  in the city and beyond that have benefitted from the most generous personal sacrifice of time, expertise and attention.

Our thoughts, prayers and sympathies go out to Pat and the family over their loss. We all leave a ‘hole’ in the fabric of life when we pass away. Some leave a bigger hole than others.

The funeral will take place at York crematorium on Monday 19th December at 12.20pm.  There will be no flowers but a donation to The Alzheimer’s society would be very much appreciated by the family.


Tony Evans
President
York City Baths Club