Four decades of fitness ... and still counting
BY KATHY CHANG
Staff Writer

KATHY CHANG Paula Lehman-Pezet, who is retiring as aquatic director for the Woodbridge YMCA, poses with two of her students, Jimmy Berecsky, 4, and Justin Greene, 4 at the Woodbridge Community Center.

WOODBRIDGE - Paula Lehman-Pezet's long career with the Metuchen and Woodbridge YMCAs began more than 40 years ago as a volunteer back in 1964.

"I started bringing my daughter to an eight-week gymnastics class at the Metuchen YMCA," she said. "They asked me after two weeks if I would like to teach gymnastics, and I said yes."

Shortly after, the woman who taught swimming at the YMCA left. She recommended Lehman-Pezet to replace her.

"It all kind of snowballed from there," said Lehman-Pezet. "I did a little bit of everything."

Now 71, aquatic director Lehman-Pezet has decided to slow down. Just a little.

"I love my job as aquatic director, but I felt it was time to step down and let someone else come in and bring fresh new ideas," she said.

She spent 38 years at the Metuchen YMCA and has worked as an aquatic director at the Woodbridge YMCA for almost five years.

"I'm a big fitness person," she said. "I was raised in England. At that time, I think schools emphasized more on fitness, because we did something every day whether it was swimming or something else."

Lehman-Pezet once had dreams of becoming a professional dancer.

"I always wanted to dance," she said. "But to become professional you had to be a certain height and weight, and I was too short."

She said working at the YMCA is the next-best thing.

"I have enjoyed every bit, every aspect of my job," she said. "I am a people person, and I love meeting different people. The YMCA offers a lot of opportunities. There is an interest for everyone."

Lehman-Pezet still hopes to form a Woodbridge swim team.

"Right now we have a developmental swim team," she said. "The team makes sure all kids have an opportunity to learn to swim. We have 60 to 70 kids on the team that range from 6- to 15-year-olds."

Debbie Wall, the Woodbridge YMCA's front desk supervisor, said Paula was instrumental in teaching 4-year-old Jimmy Berecsky how to swim.

"Jimmy wouldn't even jump in the water," said Wall. "But now he loves going in the water because of Paula. She's great."

Lehman-Pezet said she will be around to help transition the new aquatic director.

"I will still be involved with the swimming," she said, "just not as the director."

She has no plans to leave the YMCA anytime soon.

She also plans to teach six to seven fitness classes a week.

"One of the classes I'm teaching is the Silver Sneakers class, which we started here in July," she said. "The class is for seniors, four days a week, and each class is 45 minutes long."

Lehman-Pezet was a little leery about teaching the Silver Sneakers class at first.

"I had a lot of people signing up for the class, and I didn't know if they [the seniors] were going to like the program," she said. "But they have been very responsive to what we do. It's a funny class, too - it's probably because I am crazy," she joked.

The Silver Sneakers fitness program offers an innovative blend of physical activity, healthy lifestyle and socially oriented programming that allows older adults to take greater control of their health.

"Some of the ladies in my class were confused about the name of the program," she said. "They asked me why I wasn't wearing silver sneakers. I didn't know what to say, but they told me that they were going to spray-paint their sneakers silver."

One of her other goals is to form a senior dance choreography class.

"My career is still continuing," she said. "If I had to do this all over again, I would. I can't see myself doing anything else."