After learning to surf and swim at a young age and being part of a surf lifesaving team, senior Thomas Romesser is now following in his dad’s footsteps and is a county lifeguard down at Newport Beach.
“I have always loved the ocean. My dad would take me out on his board when I was younger and growing up, hearing my dad and aunts’ stories about lifeguarding always made me excited to see what I can do to help others as they did,” Romesser said.
Romesser started in the Junior Lifeguard program when he was nine years old, continuing until he was fifteen. He went from group C, the youngest kids in the program, to group A, the eldest and most skilled kids in the program. After, he was a cadet for one year and throughout the whole program, he learned ocean safety, lifesaving techniques, surf skills, and teamwork and leadership skills to prepare for his future.
“My dad was a lifeguard, so I knew I wanted to do that this summer, so I went down to Newport and did the tryouts. I got offered a job position and now I’m in the academy, training to be a lifeguard. [Getting accepted] made me feel very good and I was excited to help people and get to work at the place I love,” Romesser said.
For two months, Romesser was a part of the Basic Lifeguard Academy before he could be hired. He would go down to Newport Beach to train for nine hours every weekend.
“You learn how to treat spinal injuries, you get CPR certified, you become an EMR, which is an emergency first responder [that provides immediate, lifesaving care to injured patients before the ambulance arrives] and after all that, then you can actually work [as a lifeguard]. It’s a lot and you have to stay in shape on your own, swim, and work out,” Romesser said.
On a regular day while lifeguarding, Romesser gets to his tower and sets up. In his mind, he scans the beach, looking for anyone who could be struggling and could drown. If he sees something, he calls dispatch, which is the lifeguard headquarters, and makes the rescue.
“Recently, my friend and I were working down in Newport. There were two of us in a tower, and there was this group of people who were here from New Zealand, and they got swept out. My friends and I saved all three of them. It made me feel good and accomplished,” Romesser said.
Lifeguarding has taught Romesser that he needs to stay responsible and attentive or some could lose their life. He knows that he needs to be careful while working because it is his responsibility to help people.
“Sometimes you’re going out to help someone, and they don’t want help or they’re fighting you. It’s hard to know if you should let them just figure it out and risk them hurting, or if you have to be firm and be like, ‘Come on, I need to help you out today.’ So it’s sometimes hard to know what the right thing is,” Romesser said.
Even though saving people may be hard sometimes, it makes him feel accomplished by doing something he is passionate about. Another achievement for Romesser is winning lifesaving races. When he was fifteen years old, Romesser became part of the Los Angeles County Surf Lifesaving Association. He performs in many lifeguarding events such as swimming, paddling, and running.
“[Racing] is fun because you get to go with all your friends and compete with them. You motivate each other when they’re not doing well, or if you’re not doing well, they’re there to pick you up,” Romesser said.
Romesser travels all around California to race at other beaches and counties with his teammates. Junior Emmory Mosteller, whom he met about two and a half years ago through the team, competes with Romesser during some of these events.
“Nationals is probably the biggest event for us in L.A. County during the summer. A lot of people in the U.S. who do surf lifesaving come, and we all compete against each other. It’s really fun, and it’s a whole-day thing,” Mosteller said.
To get to Nationals, they compete in weekend races over the summer and in a couple of events during their offseason. The surf lifesaving team has taught both Romesser and Mosteller to become better people, teaching them skills that they use in their lives right now.
“It made me a better teammate by being surrounded by a lot of people that were like me, very ambitious and all coordinated to the same goal to be getting better and stronger, not just as a person physically but in my relationships with other people. [The surf lifesaving team] has really helped build my community,” Mosteller said.
Romesser knew that he wanted to work at the beach, which is why lifeguarding and being on the surf lifesaving team were a good fit for him. They both make Romesser feel good about himself, especially when he is working as a lifeguard, because saving people and supporting his community is very rewarding.
“Hard work pays off from the classwork because you need to learn all the medical stuff to win the workouts, win the events, and all the physical stuff and just seeing that now I can go out and help people,” Romesser said. “It has taught me many values and life lessons that I will remember for the rest of my life.”
