James “Jim” Wheeler is currently the General Manager for the Hayward Area Recreation and Park District, serving over 300,000 community members across 104 square miles with over 120 parks and facilities. He works for a five-member elected Board of Directors. Jim has spoken and trained park and recreation and aquatic professionals at over 275 conferences, schools, workshops and trainings in the US and Canada.
Jim has been a long-time volunteer for NRPA as a Risk Management School Regent, Aquatic Branch President, National Aquatic Management School Faculty. Jim has served CPRS as a President and Founder of the Aquatic Section, President of the Administrators Section, then as State Board of Directors President. As a long-time open water swimmer and volunteer with United States Masters Swimming he worked on national committees including, long range planning, long distance swimming, open water swimming, safety and education, marketing, governance and was a member of the USMS Board of Directors. Jim has been a volunteer for the American Red Cross for 47 years and is currently the Chairman of the Board of Trustees for the California Foundation for Parks and Recreation.
His honors and awards include, two CPRS Presidential Awards, two Southern California Public Pool Operators Citations, an NRPA Distinguished Aquatic Service Award, the first ever CPRS Aquatic Service Award, the International Swimming Hall of Fame Paragon Safety Award, USMS Open Water Contributor of the Year, Pacific Masters Swimming Contributor of the Year, Pacific Swimming’s first Diversity in Aquatics Award and the San Francisco Recreation and Parks Martin Luther King Making a Difference Award, and more. He is an avid sailor and has competed in the US Sailing Men’s Amateur National Championships. He recently completed his second 2,100-mile sailing race from San Francisco to Hawaii. He coaches youth sailing for the Richmond Yacht Club Junior Sailing Program and is the varsity swim coach at St Joseph Notre Dame High School in Alameda, California.