> Features > Pg 2 Feature Stories > Family turns gray days gold with unity at Senior Games
Family turns gray days gold with unity at Senior Games
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Miles Tipton (center) poses with his medal winning daughters. (left to right) Beth Cordero, Sheila Rathbun, Tipton, Mary Grey and Faith Leahy. Reminder Publications submitted photo
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By Natasha Clark
Assistant Managing Editor
SPRINGFIELD Miles Tipton is recovering from a serious bout with stage four throat cancer. On Dec. 1, 2007 he received his last cancer treatment. Seven months later Tipton won four gold and two silver medals in swimming at the Massachusetts Senior Games. Four of his five daughters participated as well, racking up an impressive 18 medals between them on June 27-28.
Eighty-year-old Tipton is a long-time swim coach. After settling in the area in the mid-'60s, he made a living coaching at local high schools including the old Classical High School and the Greater Springfield YMCA. After retirement, the Ludlow resident continued to quench his thirst for water by swimming laps at the Ludlow Boys & Girls Club everyday. He has competed in the Massachusetts Senior Games since it was founded in 1991. It is open to individuals age 50 and older.
This year he placed gold in the 100-meter backstroke, 100-meter breaststroke, 200-meter breaststroke and the 200-meter backstroke. He received silver medals in the 50-meter breaststroke and 50-meter backstroke. But last summer the Games were the furthest thing from his mind when he discovered a lump in his throat.
"I went to Riverbend [Medical Group], where my primary care is, and they sent me to get a CAT scan and biopsy and eventually they referred me down to the D'Amour Center for Cancer Care for treatment," Tipton told Reminder Publications in his raspy voice, a result of the radiation treatment.
"My voice is damaged from the radiation. They radiated my neck basically and around the vocal chords. Some days my voice is better than others. I can't go on 'American Idol' anymore," he joked.
Maybe Tipton isn't destined for the stage, but his turn at this year's Games proved whenever he hits the water he is surely bound for the medal podium. Though Tipton isn't yet feeling 100 percent, he managed to draw strength from his wife Edie and his daughters: Beth Cordero of Springfield, Mary Grey of Chicopee and Faith Leahy and Sheila Rathbun, both of East Longmeadow. Younger sister Maureen Tipton, an East Longmeadow resident and librarian at the Springfield Library, didn't make the age benchmark, but Rathbun referred to her as the ultimate cheerleader.
Leahy said when her father first started out as a Games participant back in the early 1990s he also did track and field. She is thrilled to have shared the Games with her siblings and her father, she said, especially since "in the fall, we really didn't know what his outcome would be."
"The treatments are very difficult and I think he didn't want to do it anymore. But he did and he's doing a lot better," Leahy said.
The motivator to keep her sisters training during the cold winter months, she and Grey, both employees at Western New England College, would swim at the college three to four times a week. "We inspired each other," Leahy said.
Rathbun agreed, adding that the comradeship and unity it brought was wonderful. "It was really nice to do together. I was just so excited for him. I was excited that he made it through and that he was able to participate."
Tipton said his health is slowly improving. His current goal is to stabilize his weight.
"I haven't got my strength back yet and I lost quite a bit of weight. They are working on that with nutrients. I lost about 30 pounds. At one point I had a feeding tube. When they took the tube out [my weight] started sliding down a bit. I'm eating good. I'm getting back to almost where I used to be before," Tipton shared.
He did not do anything too strenuous to prepare for the Games. Tipton said he stuck to his regular daily format at the Boys & Girls Club.
"It wasn't that difficult. I don't train super hard. I'm not the big Olympic athlete. I knew I could do whatever I had to do going to the pool everyday," Tipton said.
He's most proud of his daughters. "They were great. The two older ones had been very active when they were little [in swimming] and the next two kind of caught up into it later. They got caught up in the idea of competition," he said with a laugh. "They're very competitive."
The sisters had a chance to race one another on the 50-meter backstroke. Cordero won the gold for the 50-54 age range and Rathbun took the gold for the 55-59 age group.
Leahy is already fired up for a rematch. "We'll be better next year because now we'll know what to expect," Leahy said. "Next year Mary and I will beat our sisters."
Still, she hopes if anything comes out of their positive experience, she would like it to be for others to get involved in the Senior Games.
"There's a lot of positives and I think it would be nice if more people could get involved. The Games have not been as strong as they use to be," Leahy added.
All family members have qualified for the national Senior Games competition. Their complete medal standings are: Rathbun, four gold medals; Leahy, four gold and one silver; Grey, two gold, two silver and two bronze; and Cordero, three gold medals.
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> Features > Pg 2 Feature Stories > Family turns gray days gold with unity at Senior Games
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