GULF SHORES — As the spring break crowds packed onto the beaches, Liam Bickham was among them. However, the Gulf Shores High School senior was instead perched atop a lifeguard stand patrolling the waters as a member of the Gulf Shores Beach Rescue unit.

A Dolphin state champion in the 100-yard backstroke and 100-yard butterfly, Bickham was part of a 16-recruit class certified as United States Lifesaving Association (USLA) Open Water Lifesavers on March 4. He wasted no time getting his feet wet and, in one shift his second week on the job, logged his first four saves.

“I was the first rookie to get a rescue. And I got four rescues. I enjoyed that a lot. Using my swimming ability to go help someone is awesome,” Bickham said during a March 28 interview. “Everyone turned out OK, so that was the biggest thing. I was super happy that everyone turned out OK.”

While he relishes the opportunity to directly give back to his own community, his sights are set on rendering aid to the entire country’s waters.

Roughly seven weeks before the Class 1A-5A state championship swimming meet on Dec. 2, 2023, Bickham signed a letter of intent to join the United States Coast Guard following his time at Gulf Shores High School. For someone who grew up wanting to be involved with the military, Bickham said he’s turning his dreams into reality.

“I've always wanted to serve my country in some sort of way. Since I was 3, I've always wanted to be in the military. So, finally living out my dream is huge,” Bickham said. “It's definitely surreal. I'm already here as a senior in high school. I remember looking up to seniors being like, ‘Man that's awesome.’ And now I'm living it.”

Although he always knew he wanted to join the military, it wasn’t until this school year that swimming and service finally overlapped. Now his ideal role is an Aviation Survival Technician where he will deploy from Coast Guard helicopters.

“I was originally getting recruited by the Naval Academy for swimming. Some things just didn't go out as I wanted them to, but I was talking to some people from the Mobile (Coast Guard) base,” Bickham said. “They let me tour the base and talk to everybody from high-ranking people like the commander of the base to lower-ranked enlisted members. Everyone said the same thing, that they didn't work at single day in their life because they loved it, and that's exactly what I wanted.”

That led him to sign into the delayed entry program which allows Bickham to remain on track to graduate from Gulf Shores High School in May before establishing his trip to boot camp. Despite some admitted nerves, he felt confident he was making the right decision when he signed the letter of intent on Oct. 11, 2023.

“I was super, super excited. Anybody would be nervous to do that, you're taking a humongous step to serve your country,” Bickham said. “I would be lying if I said I wasn't a little bit nervous. But I think I was super, super excited to go ahead and do it. And I was happy with my decision. I don't think I could have made a better decision.”

His family’s support certainly helped make the choice feel easier.

“I think they were nervous for me just because rescue swimming is a dangerous job anyway. Any job in the military has its risks,” Bickham said. “They were nervous for me, but I think they were more happy that I found something that I love so much. And I'm using my ability to do it.”

From signing a letter of intent in October to winning a state championship in December to transitioning into a rescue swimmer by spring break and already earning his first rescues, Bickham has earned all the reassurance he needed.

“I was super nervous. It was two and two. So, I was super nervous at first and then after I finally got the first two done that nervousness kind of went away. It's almost like a confidence booster just to show your training actually works,” Bickham said of the four-rescue day. “But the next two, the same way. You have a little bit of nervousness, your heart starts pumping a little faster and then as soon as you start running, everything goes quiet. You're just trying to get there and rescue them to the best of your ability.”

Now he’ll be able to lean on some first-hand experience when he goes onto the next level starting with the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) scheduled for April 8. However, possibly the biggest lesson was learned from Bickham’s Gulf Shores Beach Rescue coworkers.

“They were saying, ‘The water is fair,’” Bickham recounted. “‘It doesn't matter if you're a lifeguard for 10 years, or if you're the best swimmer in the world: the water is always going to win.’ That's one of my favorite sayings.”

As he continues to rely on his training while running toward danger instead of away from it, Bickham feels that’s just part of life.

“I would just say for anybody that's reading, don't be scared to chase your dreams,” Bickham said. “It could be scary at some points, but what's life (without fear?) You've got to be scared of life a little bit.”