Member Profile Archive

Mary Jean is not the sort of woman who stays put for very long. With a schedule that would seemingly exhaust an ironman triathlete, the cheerful grandmother of two insists she is “just having fun”.

Born in Nova Scotia, Mary Jean Anakin moved to Montreal to attend McGill University, where she met her husband Doug (an Olympic bobsled gold medalist). Drawn to life in the mountains, Mary Jean and Doug (now her husband of 35 years) moved to Invermere in January of 1992. She immediately involved herself the community, in a really big way.

Mary Jean served on the Valley Fitness Society Board of Directors for nine years, and held the position of President for a couple of years. “I love the camaraderie at Valley Fitness Centre, and the instructors. Ros is amazing,” she says. When not skiing, golfing, hiking, you can find Mary Jean at VFC four times per week, in yoga and other classes. “I’m very motivated, and just really like to be busy,” says Mary Jean. “I don’t find it hard at all to workout. The hard part is making it into the fitness centre, but once I’m there, it’s great. It feels good!”.

Mary Jean started “Chicks on Sticks”, a women’s ski club, 13 years ago. She is also a “mountain friend”, and tours skiers around Panorama to places appropriate to their level. She also finds the time to volunteer with the Canadian Cancer Society.

Mary Jean credits her commitment to fitness with a lifetime interest in sports, and a love of the outdoors. “I was even into ice hockey in high school,” she says.  One of Mary Jean’s daughters has carried on the tradition of inspiring others to achieve fitness—she teaches Physical Education at DTSS. Her other daughter lives in New Zealand, where Mary Jean and her husband love to visit.

Say hello to Mary Jean when you see her at VFC!

Member Profile Archive

Darryl Stettler

He shoots. He scores! These days, Darryl Stettler stays in shape for the energy he needs to run his successful Invermere business. But it wasn’t always so. Starting in 1996 and through to 2003, Darryl played pro hockey in Switzerland, Texas and California.

Darryl was always a very active kid, encouraged by his father to excel in sports and athletics—soccer, running, karate, kung fu, tai kwan do, boxing—and of course, hockey was his passion. “At the beginning, it was something that I think my dad wanted more than me,” he laughs. “But I got into it and now, I’m really glad he got me involved”.

Moving to Switzerland to play hockey isn’t as straightforward as you might think. “I had to get a Swiss passport”, he says. “And when you get a passport, you have to do Swiss infantry training. That was a great workout”.

“I had a great time playing hockey, and I was fortunate to meet some great people along the way. I met Mike Vernon working out at VFC, and he got me into the Calgary Flames training program. The coach for my hockey team in Switzerland was the head coach for the Swiss National Hockey Team”.

Darryl joined the Valley Fitness Centre in 1998. With his family in the Invermere area, Darryl stayed here in the summer, and lived in Europe in the winter.  “Working out at VFC really helped my game,” he says. “At the beginning, I wasn’t sure what to do, so I hired personal trainer Jeanette Riches. A lot of people don’t do this, but every time I work out I carry around a pen and paper, and keep track of my workouts. It’s motivating to see my progress, and it really keeps me focused”.

“I’m really open to a lot of different things”, he says. “I even tried yoga for a year—very, very challenging”. In 2004, Darryl even took his boxing skills into the ring for the first time in his life, and became Invermere’s Lightweight Champion in the Rumble in the Rockies.

Darryl works out with weights 3 to 4 times per week, and for cardio he enjoys running and fitness boxing. He mixes up his routine often to avoid boredom. Working out not only keeps Darryl looking good, it gives him more self-confidence. “It makes me more secure in my own abilities,” he says.

He appreciates VFC’s friendly environment, and how well-maintained it is. “I can see that it’s being well taken care of. The equipment is good. Roslyn and her staff do a great job”.

Darryl is owner and manager of Your Private Connection, a residential, commercial and industrial cleaning and maintenance service. His staff does everything from snow removal to carpet cleaning, even windows!