Battle Ground’s Shirley Romig now has six skydives under her belt with a tentative birthday jump slated for next year when she turns 78 years young.
Previously reported in The Reflector’s Sept. 6 edition, Romig was preparing for her sixth skydive to help raise funds for a good cause — raising money to support efforts to prevent child trafficking, but her seventh would be a celebration, instead.
“I would do it more often, but it’s kind of expensive, so I don’t get to it that often, but I’ll plan on it for my 78th birthday,” Romig said of skydiving.
The first time Romig jumped from a plane was to celebrate her 70th birthday with her daughter. Since then, she has skydived with both of her granddaughters and for money-raising efforts for causes she wanted to support, such as the fight against child sex trafficking and for a veteran’s service dog program.
“It’s an amazing thing. It’s the free fall and then all of a sudden the parachute opens, and you’re just floating around and the view is absolutely amazing,” Romig said.
Romig’s free fall on Sept. 17 lasted for about 55 seconds, she said, adding it took her breath away as she felt the adrenaline rush and the air pressure on her whole body. She said the feeling of freedom when jumping has also helped her brain.
All of her previous jumps were from 11,000 feet with a shorter free fall, but earlier this month she jumped from 14,000 feet, and her tandem skydive partner allowed her to use the cords that direct the parachute’s flight path.
Romig is still accepting donations for her latest cause of choice until November. Her QR code can be found on her Facebook profile, Shirley Romig.
