It was the end of Term 3, 2010, and time for Tianni, 16, to decide whether she was going to attempt the five-hour swim. Her younger sister, Shakira, 14, elected to start training and decide later whether she would do her 12 km swim. Their youngest sister, Sienna, 8, was always determined to do her 3 km swim, but whether her little arms and legs would carry her the distance was another matter. After many hours and laps of training, and with complete dedication from the girls’ mum, Tracey, who transported the girls to early morning, evening and weekend training sessions, the time was quickly approaching. Sunday 30 October arrived and Tianni and Shakira had both trained enough to attempt their long distance swim at MSAC, along with many other swimmers from other PSS sites. Finally the girls were in the pool and on their way. Just over four hours later, Shakira finished her 12 km swim still smiling. After five hours, Tianni finished her last lap, successfully completing a total of 15 km. After plenty of rest, both girls came to watch Sienna attempt her 3 km swim at PSS Carrum Downs less than a week later. Sienna swam well, taking 1 hour and 29 minutes to achieve her goal. So within seven days, the three Thornell sisters swam 30 km collectively. This is an absolutely outstanding achievement for any group, let alone a family. PSS would like to congratulate parents Dean and Tracey for their continued support and dedication which enabled the achievements of their beautiful girls. Setting goals and achieving them is such a great thing to teach young people – these girls will certainly go far after developing these skills early in life. It should also be added that Tianni started working at PSSCD as a certificate writer over 18 months ago and is now almost fully qualified as a swim teacher. She is well liked and respected by her students and peers. Well done to Tianni – a great leader in the making and an inspiration to her younger siblings.