It was a somber morning for the members of the Arlington
Knights of Columbus “Holy Mackerels” swim team Saturday, as
they honored the memory of a former teammate who passed away
in February. Peter Samp, who had been a swimmer on the team
since he was 8 years old, died suddenly of hydrocephalus
after a brain cyst he had since birth became dislodged. He
was only 18 years old.
In 2008, Peter graduated from St. Anselm’s Abbey School in
Washington, D.C., where he participated in the “It’s
Academic” program, earned a perfect score on his SAT and
accumulated 13 Advanced Placement credits. He was taking a
year off to work as a sports writer for the Montgomery County
Gazette, but was planning to attend Harvard University this
fall.
To honor Peter, the Holy Mackerels have dedicated their 2009
season to his memory. Before each race, team members make a
point of saying prayers for him. They hung an orange flag
with the regular blue and white backstroke flags above the
pool and hooked a keychain with Peter’s name on it to a lane
line, to keep him in the water with them.
Saturday, on what would have been his 19th birthday, the
swimmers wore specially made t-shirts and swim caps in
Peter’s honor. The shirts had a battle cry quote from Peter –
“We will crush them” – along with the diamonds logo of the
Pittsburgh Steelers, his favorite team. The swim caps were
designed with Peter’s name inside a Steelers logo.
During Saturday’s ceremony, team president Phil Kiko called
Peter determined, humble and “quietly inspirational” in his
swimming. He then unveiled a new award in Peter’s name, which
will be given to one particularly hard-working swimmer at the
end of every season. It will be awarded for the first time at
the team’s awards banquet later this month.
Although there are 230 swimmers from 121 families on the Holy
Mackerels, the team prides itself on being a tight-knit group
focused more on community than competition. Because many of
the swimmers end up spending every summer on the team, year
after year, over time the team becomes an extended family.
That community atmosphere has made it all the more important
to remember Peter and the role he played on the team.
“When you have a tragedy like this on a team, it needs to be
remembered,” Kiko said. “All his efforts should become an
inspiration to others.”
Everything the Holy Mackerels have done this season to
remember Peter was at the request of the swimmers themselves,
his former teammates.
“It’s important – this was not a top down award from the
coaches. Everything that’s been done was generated by the
swimmers,” Kiko said. “There are 230 swimmers on the team and
most of them knew Peter.”
“All of the kids are really touched by it, really sad, and
they wanted to do something tangible,” said Colleen Kiko,
Phil’s wife, who has had three children swim for the team.
“This is a tangible remembrance to help them all to heal.”
Peter’s parents, Rich and JoElla Samp, members of St. Agnes
Parish in Arlington, were in attendance to hear about the
award and say a few words about their son.
Peter’s father, Rich, thanked the team for their support and
talked about how Peter was never a naturally talented
swimmer, but one who had to work hard and give 100 percent to
develop skill. Eventually his work paid off, winning him
multiple coaches’ awards and the team’s Christine Anderson
Award, given in honor of another former swim team member who
passed away. Peter also worked as a junior coach on the team
for two years. Rich urged the younger swimmers to follow in
Peter’s determined footsteps and never to give up on their
goals.
He also said he was touched by the ongoing support of the
team and their efforts to honor Peter.
“We love the idea that people will remember him,” Rich said.
“We hope people will still remember him and the example he
set and we think this is a good way for that to happen.”
