PENSACOLA, Fla. — All Kathy Vail ever saw in her childhood was a mother whose life was devoted to others.
Perhaps it is not surprising that her own life would follow in the example that was set for her — that of an Angel In Our Midst.
“She doesn’t give us any mercy,” Darlene Sharpe said.
Kathy Vail — or Killer Kathy as they call her — is a volunteer instructor and coordinator for all of the water aerobics classes at the Pensacola Salvation Army Community Center.
The retired clinical social worker has spent her life helping people from running a mental health crisis line to touching young lives in the school system to counseling military members.
When she retired in 2019, she brought her love of aerobics to a place where she could be helpful. She lovingly pushes her pool mates because these classes are keeping some of them from being homebound.
“I’ve had two knee replacements, a right ankle surgery, and two injuries to my back,” Sharpe said. ” I have chronic low back pain so I can’t do normal aerobics or exercises. I need something to cushion, to provide the support that I need so that I can be able to exercise and the water is that safe haven.”
Kathy faithfully makes this commitment here three days a week. She says giving back is what you do. It’s what she saw all of her life, and what she admired.
“My mother Lee was a saint,” Vail said. “She was a wonderful woman and she was the mother of seven children. She didn’t work outside the home, but she did a lot of volunteer work with children with developmental disabilities, she worked with the blind. She did the altar guild at my church and she drove people to doctor’s appointments.”
Kathy has extended her hand and her heart wherever she has seen a need over the years. She volunteers at the Camp Happy Sands summer program for disadvantaged youth.
She’s very active at St. Monica’s Episcopal Church and calls bingo for seniors with intellectual and developmental disabilities at the Arc Gateway.
“I just really enjoy that,” Vail said. “We have lengthy bingo and celebrate everybody’s wins, we do songs, and we just have a great old time.”
Every task suits her, from giggling with children to cleaning restroom stalls. It’s all about making just one day brighter, for just one somebody.
Community center director Christian Hatzenbeler says that makes all the difference in the world.
“Having her has been a tremendous benefit for everybody,” Hatzenbeler said. “She is a true woman of the community. She volunteers in multiple places, and she does it with her heart. I think that’s why people gravitate towards her. She is just a very positive lady.
“She’s given us the wherewithal where we can function in the pool and at least try to do some stuff for ourselves out of the pool,” Sharpe said. “Cleaning at the house, grocery shopping, different things on that level. She’s been a Godsend.”
Being a blessing to others is what Kathy Vail hopes her life has been.
“My mother was the closest thing to Jesus I’ve ever known,” Vail said. “She was a precious person. If I’ve just had a little piece of that, if I’ve just been a little bit like my mom, who was like, Jesus, I would feel like that’s a good thing.”