Herman Kelly stood on the 10-yard line of the Caesars Superdome this past week in total awe. He looked around the dome and admired the pageantry of the atmosphere around him. He watched the cheerleaders and then the New Orleans Saints as they began to warm up.
Kelly looked up and asked, “God, how did I get here?”
And as time seemed to stand still, he heard a response.
“You’ve gotten here because of my blessings and grace to you.”
Kelly realized that there was a much bigger purpose to his pain that he could have ever imagined.
Kelly, LSU African and African American Studies (AAAS) adjunct instructor, was honored on Thanksgiving night during the Bills vs. Saints game as a Peoples Health Champion, an award given in collaboration with Peoples Health insurance and the Saints to recognize the exceptional achievements of Louisiana residents aged 65 and older.
Kelly was nominated and chosen for the award in recognition of his outstanding achievements in both swimming and fundraising for cancer patients. He holds the swimming title of state champion in seven events, and placed in the top 25 for three separate events at the National Senior Games in 2019.
The pastor and professor of more than 20 years fell in love with swimming at a very young age, but his pool time dwindled after he became a pastor and was eventually assigned to lead Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Baton Rouge, a place he now considers home. Health concerns in 2015 are what forced him to find the pool again.
“In 2015, I was overweight,” Kelly said. “I had medical issues and my doctor told me that if I didn’t straighten my life out, I would have serious problems. He told me that I would need to be put on medication. Now obviously I didn’t want that, so he gave me six weeks to try to get my life together, or else I would have to be put on medication.”
Six weeks was all Kelly needed to prove his doctor wrong. He swam at LSU’s natatorium twice a day for those six weeks and saw his health drastically improve. After the six week period, Kelly’s doctor decided that medication was no longer needed
But Kelly kept swimming.
His next goal was to begin swimming competitively, and with the help of two former LSU swimmers, Kit Hanley and Miranda Nichols, he made that dream a reality.
One of his biggest motivators, his late wife Linda Kelly, was fighting breast cancer when Kelly was training.
“There were times when my wife was ill and I didn’t want to leave her home by herself,” Kelly said. “But she would tell me, ‘No, you go swimming. I’ll be alright.’”
After she passed on Aug. 7, 2021, Kelly made it his mission to continue her legacy through the achievements that accompanied his passion. Kelly sought to raise awareness as well as money for cancer patients through his swimming. He partnered with Crawfish Aquatics and Coach Nan Fontenot this past summer to host Swim for Life, a fundraiser where participants gave flat donations to swim laps around the pool. Over $5,800 was raised, and Kelly is excited to raise even more during future events.
After the passing of Linda, the fundraiser was newly dubbed Swim for Linda, and people have continued to donate. A scholarship that is awarded to a cancer survivor was also created in her name, which will continue each year moving forward.
“Her legacy as a person may have physically ended, but it is my job to carry on the legacy that we built together as a family,” Kelly said.
Kelly knows that his wife would be proud of everything he has been able to accomplish. Having this in mind only made receiving the Peoples Health Champion Award that much more special.
“I know that she would say, ‘I’m proud of you,’” he said. “‘I’m so glad that you didn’t give up. Even in my sickness, you kept it up.’”
There’s no sign of slowing down for Dr. Kelly anytime soon. He is currently training for the Senior Olympic Games that will be held in Fort Lauderdale, Florida this coming May.
“My goal is to be at the top,” he explained. “I want to push to be in the top-12 of each event and then next time, I want to be in the top five.”
After retiring, Kelly hopes to start swimming internationally.
It can only be assumed that Kelly will continue to pursue his dreams and succeed at them, all in the name of his late wife, Linda, and the blessings that he credits God for bestowing onto him.
