Enjoy a relaxing evening out knowing that your children will be safe, happy and having a blast! Our night consists of pizza, games, a fun craft, swimming, popcorn, juice, and a movie!
WHEN: August 9 (Make & Take Play-Doh Party)
TIME: 5:30pm-9:30pm
COST:
Ages 4-11 Member: $20; Child of Member: $25; Non-Member: $30
Ages 6m-3 Member: $25; Child of Member: $30; Non-Member: $35
Contact the Cordata Front Desk for more information or to reserve a spot!
We are proud and honored to announce our Employee of the month for August – Celine Mauger!!! Celine began her Zumba teaching career at BAC in 2014 – and never looked back. Fortunately for the staff, and the members here, we have all benefitted from the love and energy she pours into every, single class she teaches.
Celine has used her gifts to spread joy and laughter in a fun environment where everyone feels welcome, and no one feels intimidated. When you come into one of her classes you will feel like you are walking into a party. Along with the great music and the epic energy, she takes the time to turn the studio into a dance club—complete with the colorful and flashing lights—every single time. When you leave one of Celine’s Zumba classes, you will be sweaty, laughing and definitely wanting to come back for more.
Celine moved here with her husband Michael from France in 2006, and to Bellingham in 2011. Together, they have 3 children aged 10 and 8 years old and 18 months. They stay very active as a family, which is her full-time “hobby”.
We at BAC feel very fortunate to have such a gifted and generous Instructor. If you haven’t tried her Zumba or Zumba Gold class before, you won’t regret it.
Thank you, Celine, for sharing your joy with all of us!
Congratulations Joanna for being BAC’s August Member of the Month!
Joanna has lived on both the East and West Coasts, but moved to Bellingham 12 years ago and married her husband Wesley in 2010. They have 2 children, Gwen (4) and Jacob (2) who absolutely LOVE coming to Kid’s Club and family swim times. Joanna stays at home with the kids, which is a full-time job for now.
She has played violin since she was 8 when her grandfather gave her her first violin and taught her how to play. In college, she studied General Music and currently enjoys playing with the local Bellingham Community Chamber Orchestra. She also teaches private violin lessons and occasionally plays with her church music team.
The reason she joined BAC because she is in the process of becoming a gestational surrogate for couples who cannot carry their own children, and was told she needs to lose a little weight before moving forward with it. So far she has lost 20 pounds with the help of the wonderful aqua aerobics classes! She is looking forward to reaching her goals and maintaining a healthy lifestyle with the support of the community at BAC.
Please note, the Cordata Club will be closed August 23-25 for our annual maintenance and cleaning shutdown. We will reopen on Monday, August 26th at 5:30 AM. The Downtown Club will be open for your use:
Friday 5:00AM – 8:00PM
Saturday & Sunday 7:00AM – 2:00PM
Want to learn the basics of the game including strokes, serves, and rules. All equipment provided. Join club pro, Wanda Collins, for our Beginner Clinic:
Monday, August 5 from 6:15 – 7:00pm
BAC Members — Free
Non Members — $15.00
BAC will be offering a belly dancing class this summer on Monday evenings @ 6:45-7:45 p.m. Rachel Carter is the instructor. She usually teaches at WCC but we got her for the summer. So come check it out. It’s a lot of fun!
Members and non-members pay a fee of $15 each class.
Ends in August.
BAC hosted a one-day handball event on July 20. Twenty-two handballers from across the Puget Sound played in the fun event.
Pictured (from left) are Tim Laverty with partner, Ken Starcher, and Tim Goering with partner (and tournament director) Carl Mattson.
Congratulations to BAC member, Mike Flannery! Mike attended the USHA National Four Wall Championships in California in June and placed 1st in Men’s Singles Masters 60+. After a first-round bye, Mike faces three tough opponents, winning his final match in a tiebreaker: 15-21, 21-14, 11-8.
Join us for a great 10 weeks! Four divisions for Beginners through Open play. Sign up at the front desk of our Cordata facility.
Wednesdays for 10 WEEKS
September 18—November 20
$15 BAC Members
$60 Non Members
Prizes for 1st, 2nd and 3rd in each division.
Questions: Contact Wanda Collins (wandac@bellinghamathleticclub.com)
Each of us chooses to celebrate our birthdays in different ways. Of course, certain birthdays are considered milestone birthdays, sweet 16, nifty 50, and so on. With the coming of each of these milestones, some of us may choose to do something extraordinary. Something that may be on our bucket list.
For two BAC members, they decided to celebrate their 70th birthdays with an extraordinary adventure, going halfway around the 
world to Nepal and trekking to Mt. Everest base camp (17,600 ft)! Lynn and Jean Dayton made the commitment of going to Mt. Everest this past spring for the adventure of a lifetime!
The preparation for this adventure began last year. Lynn and Jean have been members at BAC on and off for over 30 years. The past five years they both have been participating in group classes as well as doing a little strength training but they both knew that they were going to have to do a bit more in preparation for their Mt. Everest adventure. To assist them in their training they enlisted the help of BAC Director of Fitness, Mike Locke, and with his guidance underwent a regiment of strength training and interval training on the treadmill. They also utilized their neighborhood trails and did day hikes with packs on Chuckanut. To assist them with testing their cold weather gear for Everest, Lynn and Jean visited Bellingham Cold Storage and their refrigeration units which are kept at a chilly -24 degrees F! Brrrh!!
Lynn and Jean’s Everest base camp adventure began on April 19th with their flight into Kathmandu, Nepal (4000 ft). After two days of rest, they took a helicopter flight from Kathmandu to the village of Lukla (9300 ft). From there they hiked to the village of Monjo for their first night’s stay.
One of the keys to such a trek is acclimatizing to the altitude—climb high, sleep low! For 3 days Lynn and Jean did acclimatizing hikes in Namche Bazaar (11,200 ft). Namche Bazaar gave them their first real view of Everest. This type of trip is quite a production, 6 yaks carried the team’s gear under the direction of 6 Sherpas and the owners of the trekking company. Lynn and Jean came away with an appreciation for the Sherpa people, who they describe as a friendly, helpful and fun-loving people although the children are a bit camera shy.
With the 6 Sherpas, 2 owners, 6 yaks, and 13 clients, the group made their way across suspension bridges spanning the many tributaries to the Dudh Kosi. It was during this trek to Tengbouche (12,800 ft) that they saw some of the most majestic views of the Khumbu regions peaks (Everest, Lhotse, Nuptse, and Ama Dablam). On May 2nd, Lynn and Jean successfully reached their destination, Everest Base Camp (17,600 ft) where they spent one night in their tent.
Lynn said, ”Visiting Nepal, the Himalayas, and Mt. Everest was never on my ‘Bucket List’. It hit me though, as I stood viewing the region and mountains that had been such an influence to me, that they were the inspiration to my 50+ years of mountain climbing. I started climbing just 4 years after Jim Whittaker became the first American (and 10th person) to summit Mt. Everest. So I had a teary moment or two just thinking about that. I never dreamed that I would be there especially at 70 years of age!”
“Reflecting on the trip“, said Jean, “Nepal was beautiful and the Himalayas were breathtaking. The people were very friendly and welcoming. Our trekking company made things easy for us. The Sherpas and guides took very good care of all of us. Everything was ‘Top Notch’ considering where we were and what we were there to accomplish.”
“When Lynn first came to me with this dream of his, I thought he had ‘LOST HIS MIND’”, said Jean. “Lynn and I are active but not nearly as active in our backpacking/alpine treks as we were pre-retirement. Retirement and traveling have changed our activities somewhat. We do more trail hikes and not always with packs. Both Lynn and I still get to the club, but for me, exercising in the water is much easier on my back. Mike helped us build a strong core, incorporating body weight and resistance exercises which got us prepared!! Thanks, Mike, for helping us achieve Everest Base Camp (cold and beautiful).”
What’s next? Jean says she is still thinking about it, however, she thinks it is her turn to pick and she will carefully consider her options!
Congratulations to both Lynn and Jean! We are glad BAC could help in your success!!
