Lakewood father and daughter bond over sports and school

Published 10:45 pm Monday, March 2, 2009

LAKEWOOD — Father and daughter dress alike in yellow “­Supernerds” shirts. They contemplate trivia.

Who is the author of “How the Other Half Lives?”

Jacob Riis.

What is the name of the pilot who landed on the Hudson River?

Chesley Sullenberger.

Name the type of asexual reproduction where small pieces of sponges break off and grow into new pieces.

Fragmentation.

They go to Advanced Placement U.S. history class together and run after school with the cross country team.

Chelsea and Jeff Sowards say they didn’t set out to spend so much time together, it just worked out that way.

Jeff Sowards has taught history and coached track, cross country and Hi-Q knowledge team at Lakewood High School for years. Chelsea grew up on the sidelines, tagging along with her parents at races and visits to LHS, a two-­minute drive from their house.

She shares her dad’s love for running and obscure trivia, so she joined track and cross country as a freshman, and this year tried out for the Hi-Q team.

“I think we’re a lot closer just because he’s in every part of my life,” Chelsea, 17, said after a recent Hi-Q match. “He sees me in the hall with my friends, and my friends are his athletes. So it’s a more close relationship.”

On game day, the Sowardses arrive in the Lakewood theater in their uniforms: jeans and bright yellow shirts with a Superman “S” on the front and “Supernerds” printed on the back. Chelsea takes a seat on stage. Her dad sits in the front row.

While she answers questions with her teammates, her dad looks on, jotting notes. He doesn’t cheer, but when Chelsea answers a Shakespeare question correctly, he smiles.

Sowards, 45, tries to treat his daughter like his other students. She usually does her homework alone. If she needs help, he steps in, but he says other students can call him for help as well. He says he quizzes her for Hi-Q occasionally, but not too often.

Still, he grins thinking of how she calls him “Dad” in class.

“I really try to give her her space, even in cross country and track,” he said. “I don’t need to be ‘hovering Dad’ all the time. What’s been fun for me is sharing the things I do on a daily basis with her.”

Chelsea’s mom, Tammy Sowards, also used to coach cross country at Lakewood, but she quit five years ago so she could attend Chelsea’s middle school track meets and spend more time with the youngest member of the family, seventh-grader Rachel Sowards.

She loves watching her husband and daughter chat on the track and in the Hi-Q arena. She’s supportive of their plans to travel to Europe after Chelsea graduates next year and says she’s happy watching from the sidelines.

Her husband works a lot and is studying to earn an extra teaching certification. Spending time together at school has given father and daughter a chance to really connect, she said.

“I think it’s a special time for both of them,” she said.

The Sowardses are the only ­father-daughter Hi-Q team in Snohomish County this year, according to Gretchen Rowe, the regional coordinator. Jeff Sowards was on the Hi-Q team at ­Marysville-Pilchuck High School in 1981.

With the regular Hi-Q season coming to an end and the championship just weeks away, Rowe said she’s enjoyed watching Chelsea and her dad on stage together.

“Especially in this day in time when you have parents that are both working jobs, and children that are involved in activities, to be able to bring those two together and to have that extra time to bond, I think is very special,” Rowe said. “Over the course of the season you get to know the adviser and the students as well. It’s just obvious that they have a very special relationship.”

Kaitlin Manry: 425-339-3292, kmanry@heraldnet.com.