ON CAMPUS: Getting fit with Loyalist
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For as long as Rhea Sabatine can remember, she’s lived an active life. At five years old, she was scrimmaging with her father as they played hockey. In high school, her focus narrowed to the fitness and training aspect of sport.
“It started with soccer,” said Sabatine. “I was trying to get stronger. I was researching fitness and getting more involved. I was eating healthier.”
As the end of high school neared, she considered her post-secondary options and chose to study fitness and health promotion at Loyalist College. During her first year, she became a Lancer and joined the college’s varsity volleyball team. Academically, she was immersed in all of her courses.
As part of the program’s two 160-hour work placement opportunities, Sabatine went back to Madawaska Valley District High School, her former high school in Barry’s Bay, to gain hands-on experience in the school’s fitness facility.
Much like her fitness ambitions, Sabatine had always dreamed of living in a big city. Originally from Madawaska, she was familiar with rural life and was looking for a change. In the spring of 2015, before graduating college, she completed her second placement opportunity at the Nepean Sportsplex, a large training facility in Ottawa.
Realizing she would have to learn another language to stay competitive in the capitol, Sabatine decided to move back home to Madawaska, lace up her hiking boots and spend a season in Algonquin Park working as an outfitter, carrying canoes. Then she received a call that changed everything.
Sabatine was offered a two-year fitness facility co-ordinator position at the Madawaska Valley Fitness Centre, located in Madawaska Valley District High School – the same fitness facility she worked in as a student.
“I didn’t actually think I would get the job,” she said. “I thought I would be the youngest, least experienced person applying – and I probably was – but this is the kind of opportunity you have to apply for. You can’t pass something like this up.”
While the fitness centre was established, it was used exclusively by students. In partnership with the township and with a grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation, the centre was set to become a public facility.
“When I was hired, I was told that it was my show,” she said. “I had to create everything. I made sure all of the safety regulations were in place before we actually started the gym. That’s what I was worried about.”
Sabatine manages five staff members and supervises three instructors. She’s the linchpin keeping the facility together. She’s responsible for advertising, marketing and public relations. She’s been on the radio promoting this endeavour and has been featured in newspapers.
“Because it’s new, a lot of people in the area don’t know about it. I have to get the word out; and when those people come in, I’m greeting them.”
On October 2, Sabatine hosted the centre’s grand opening and welcomed the community to its new fitness facility; and she is already making improvements. In February, she will expand her team of fitness instructors and change some of the classes.
“The biggest problem we have is the fitness classes,” she said. “A lot of people want different programs, so we’re trying to upgrade them. It’s about keeping the community happy. That’s the biggest challenge.”
Loyalist College’s fitness and health promotion program trains students to be qualified fitness and health professionals who help people lead better, longer lives through healthy, active lifestyles.
Students who graduate from the program are prepared to obtain the nationally recognized certification with the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology as Certified Personal Trainers. They also receive the industry-recognized HIGH FIVE certification in leadership and coaching required to work with day camps and children’s programs.
For more information on Loyalist’s Fitness and Health Promotion program, visit loyalistcollege.com