Davenport Swim and Dive Head coach Justin Vasquez shares his unique perspective on a great man and coach

Coach Don Kimble was a role model and mentor to so many swimmers and coaches.

I met Don through Dan Kimble, Don's son. Dan and I were teammates and in the same graduating class at Grand Valley State University. During two of our college summers, Dan and I coached and swam for his Dad. Instantly, Coach Don made an impact on me as a swimmer and as a young coach. 

As a swimmer I remember Coach being organized with his workouts and making sure there was always a purpose for every part of the practice. I also, remember Coach always having something to say after a swim. He made sure to give some type of feedback, so we all knew what to improve on for next time. Most importantly, the more time you spent with coach, the more you understood how much he cared about all of his swimmers. His genuine care for his swimmers shined through with everything he did as a coach, his effort in everything he did on the pool deck proved how much love and care he had for his swimmers. Coach Don led by example, as a swimmer you knew he was working hard and the expectation from Coach was that you worked as hard.

As a coach, so much of my philosophy has come from talking, observing, and learning from Don. I am grateful I had the opportunity to tell Coach often how appreciative I am to have him as a mentor. Throughout my coaching career I would reach out to Coach to chat or even set up a time to talk with him in person. Being the person and coach Don was, he always made time for me and I have always been thankful for that.  

When Davenport decided to add a men's team and to add a full-time coaching position to our program, I had a few people in mind for the position and Don was one of them. After many conversations with Coach, we both decided this was a dream situation for us both. When hiring Don, my hope for Coach was for Davenport to be his last spot. I wanted Coach to have nothing to worry about except coaching, I wanted him to be able to end his career doing what he loved to do…motivate, inspire, develop, and mentor. We talked everyday about our plans for the program and how amazing it is to be able to build one together.

No words can really describe the impact Coach Don had on people he was around. 

I miss him everyday. I miss laughing with him, I miss learning from him and I miss just being around him. He may be gone, but he will always be a Davenport Panther and an integral part of what this program becomes.

- Justin Vasquez