Ethan Coleman and Wylie Maier are successful high school swimmers at Parkland and Easton High School, respectively.

They both spend a lot of time practicing in their respective pools and are equipped to go long distances in a variety of events at a rapid speed.

Coleman and Maier will be swimming on Saturday morning, but not in a pool.

They will be two of four local scholastic swimmers participating in the NYC SEAL Swim in the Hudson River with New York City on one side and Liberty State Park in Jersey City, New Jersey, on the other.

The high school athletes will join former Palisades and Palmerton boys basketball coach Ken Termini on Team 610. The other scholastic swimmers are Parkland’s Jacob Piccini and Luke Stahley. The goal of Team 610 was to raise $25,000 which has been accomplished, and as of Thursday they were second on the team fundraising leaderboard with $27,520.

“It was actually my Parkland High School swim coach [Allison McPeek] who gave me the idea to do this,” said Coleman. “Luke Stahley is one of my good friends and he’s also doing it. I didn’t know if I would have the time to commit to it, but after a couple of days I decided to do it. It’s definitely a big physical challenge, but it’s more about the patriotic message and honoring the veterans who have served this country over the last 250 years. We’re doing it for them.”

Maier said he had one of his friends participate with his father last year and his friend told him it was a fun experience. Then Easton swim coach Matt Ellis sent him the form and forwarded him Termini’s email.

Since Maier is considering a career in the military and is applying to both the U.S. Naval Academy and Air Force, he sees this as a learning opportunity.

“I really want to help raise money for the veterans who have served and helped all of us stay safe,” Maier said. “I am learning a lot about open-water swimming because normally I don’t do them. I try and avoid them because actually they are kind of scary. You have all kinds of little black things in the water, and it freaks me out a little, but I have been practicing and I think I am ready.”

Maier said his grandfather served in the marines during the Vietnam conflict.

“I can’t wait to honor him in doing this,” Maier said. “This is just an outstanding experience where I can help others.”

Coleman also had a father and other family members serve in the military.

“I’ve heard about their experiences and it’s interesting to hear that the transition from military life to civilian life isn’t easy.” Coleman said. “This event is about adventure therapy, and Bill Brown does an awesome job promoting it. It’s less about the swim and more about the experience. It’s very humbling and I hope this event goes well and it resonates with all of us. As a rising senior at Parkland, I am definitely going to back and promote this event with the underclassmen.”

According to the organization’s website, the “NYC SEAL Swim 2026 is more than an open-water swim. It is a powerful veteran-led movement built on courage, remembrance, brotherhood, resilience, and patriotism. The NYC SEAL Swim brings together former Navy SEALs, veterans, police officers, firefighters, first responders, athletes, supporters, and patriotic Americans from across the country for an unforgettable day of purpose in New York Harbor.”

The national event, which is sponsored by Beyond the Brotherhood, “honors those who have served, those who continue to serve, and the families who carry the weight of sacrifice every day. The swim is designed to send a positive patriotic message of unity while raising awareness and support for the veteran and first responder community.”

Termini, who is swimming for the third time, is the event’s No 1 fundraiser as of Thursday afternoon with $19,605.

“It’s an absolutely epic, patriotic event that is meant to represent unity and patriotism and be a shining example for everyone,” Termini said. “It was organized by a guy named Bill Brown in 2019 as a way of raising money and funds for various charities. The charities have changed over the years and this year it is for an organization called Beyond the Brotherhood which helps make former Navy SEALS made the very difficult transition from military life back to civilian life. There are a lot of challenges that come with that, especially for special forces guys. There’s a very high suicide rate for former veterans.

“Beyond the Brotherhood helps these guys get through the difficult transition and one of the reasons I really like this charity is it does skills identification test with them and then pairs the veterans up with fellowships and mentors in the business world around the country to help them make the transition from warrior leaders to business and civic leaders,” Termini said. “We all know this country needs more business and civic leaders because these men are natural go-getters and natural problem solvers.”

The course starts with a run through Liberty State Park that is followed by a jump into the Hudson where the participants swim to a barge by the State of Liberty followed by a swim to a barge by Ellis Island.

In years past, the third and final phase would have been a swim to Manhattan and a run to the 9/11 Memorial.

But this year the Port Authority had some permit issues that didn’t allow the participants to end their day in Manhattan.

“The course has changed, but the mission remains the same and that’s to raise money to help these people,” Termini said. “This event not only raises the awareness of the challenges these veterans face, but it also involves Gold Star families to make them feel welcome and included.”

The swimming distance has been reduced from 3.5 miles to 3 miles, but the running has been increased, and the group will do 300 pushups and 66 pullups.

This is not just any old Saturday in the park. The swim is demanding.

In fact, last year, the third leg had to be canceled.

“A five-knot rip current developed behind us on the second leg and put some very strong and powerful swimmers into some pretty dangerous situations,” Termini said. “Luckily, there’s a great screening process and safety protocols and last year we were able to get out of that situation without any injury or harm. But we had to cancel the third leg and get boated in from the barge.”.

While the swim is physically and mentally demanding, Termini hopes the swimmers will take at least a few seconds to look around and soak in the uniqueness of the moment.

“It’s awe-inspiring and the first time I did it was with seven other guys, two former special forces guys, five and five others from various police forces,” Termini said. “It was a dial-in swim, and it was very emotional. You sign up for this personal physical challenge, but then your quickly realize it’s so much more than that. So, I want the high school swimmers to take a look around at the face of Lady Liberty and take a look at Ellis Island and the New York City skyline. I have done over 200 open-water swim and there is nothing that compares to the New York City SEAL swim.”

For more info, go to: beyondthebrotherhood.org