Ok. This story made me cry. In a good way.
For several months, Devin Maier has taught daily fitness classes on the rooftop of a D.C. gym. Until recently, though, he had no idea that a 90-year-old woman was keenly observing — all day, every day.
Tessa Sollom Williams, whose eighth-floor apartment faces the gym, watches the workouts from her window. Her spectating begins around 7 a.m., to coincide with the first class, and typically continues — often with a cup of tea — until the final workout session ends at 7 p.m. Occasionally, she tries to emulate the moves.
“I see them doing such hard exercises. My goodness me!” said Sollom Williams, who was born in London and in her youth was a professional ballerina for 15 years.
She now lives alone at an assisted-living facility, and observing the outdoor fitness classes has been her sole source of motivation and entertainment during the pandemic.
“I never miss it,” she said, adding that she gives her daughter an update on the classes during their daily phone calls.
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Daughter wrote to gym and told them how much her mom enjoyed watching the exercises.
For the gym staff, the unexpected email was a bright spot after months of coronavirus-induced business challenges.
“It made our day. It was very timely and much-needed,” said Maier, 39, co-chief executive and part-owner of the gym, explaining membership has dwindled and times have been tough.
After receiving the message, the staff wanted to honor Sollom Williams and any other onlookers who might be watching the fitness classes from afar. They decided to paint an outdoor mural featuring a boldly written message: “Keep Moving.”
…“I love watching them,” said Sollom Williams, who danced with the International Ballet — a British ballet company that was directed by famed dancer Mona Inglesby.
…As an older adult, Sollom Williams is avid about physical fitness and regularly attended exercise classes at the retirement home before sessions halted in March.
Although virtual exercise classes are offered to residents, “mom is part of the generation that can’t use a computer at all,” said Wetenhall.
“This is what I watch,” Sollom Williams responded, gazing out the window, tea in hand, as the final yoga class of the evening wrapped up. “Half the time I can’t find the remote for the television.”
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Here she is as a ballerina in 1950.
