Bio

Deborah Twichell McDermott swam into the Wellesley record books early and often during her career at Wellesley. Deborah was a four-time Individual NCAA All-American and a three-time NCAA Relay All-American which means she placed in the top 16 in nearly every event she entered.  In fact, she never finished lower than 6^th place in Regional Competition. Deborah holds College records in four events – the 500 Free; 200 Fly; 400 Individual Medley and as a member of the 800 Free Relay. In Seven Sisters Championships she was nearly unbeatable winning the 400 IM; 200 Fly; 200 IM; 400 Free Relay and finishing second in the 200 Breaststroke.

“Chhhh!” went the pasta water as it boiled over the pot.

Cooper was crying about the ladder on his fire truck not working the way he wanted it too. I still had to wash tomatoes, snap peas, cut peppers.

Is Aquinnah doing her reading homework?

Text from work: “conference call in 40 minutes, can you cover the social media for new sellers presentation?”

The phone rings. It’s from Wellesley. “Hello.”

It’s Bridget Belgiovine, the AD. We are starting an Athletics Hall of Fame. You will be in it.

“What?” Turn off the pasta. My attention has shifted. Swimming. So many years ago. I let myself drift back. 

The pool. Serene. Water and glass surrounded by trees. The place where I honed my focus, concentration, dedication.

The exhaustion of training. The camaraderie of team. The thrill of achievement. The love of it all. I smiled a deep and satisfying smile.

Twenty-four years later, my pride is for the achievement of the College. To me, Wellesley’s Athletics Hall of Fame means enduring recognition of the love, devotion, focus, concentration, dedication, and achievement of women in pursuit of excellence. It further opens access to the expression of certain women in a certain way. This is critically important to me, as a woman, as a mother, and as a human hopeful about tomorrow.

In the past year or so I’ve read articles in the New York Times about astonishing and thorough limitations to the access women have in almost every field of human endeavors: science, studio arts, business, business schools, acting, medicine, sports. Yes, there is always a breakthrough woman here and there, but in general the cultural barriers to access apply even to the most gifted, talented, and privileged women in the world and are alarmingly high. 

This deprives the world of perspectives, voices, approaches, and solutions that might help us all. The quieting, the not-listening to voices because they are not as strong or aggressive as the strongest and most aggressive is primitive behavior, yet so entrenched in most of the world’s cultural frameworks. Is it why we have war?

Perceiving value that is not domination is fundamental to our future. Celebrating athletic achievement of women by Wellesley is a long stride toward valuing how women create and achieve. My years at Wellesley were some of the best of my life, and swimming was a cornerstone of my experience here because I was able to have unfettered access and support to pursue my gifts as far as they could take me. They’ve taken me many places and now again back to Wellesley, where the perspectives, voices, decisions, and achievements of women are the rule and law.