Free Swim Lessons a Big Success

WAITSBURG - With a closing date of August 22, swim season at the Waits- burg City Pool is quickly nearing the end of what Pool Manager Kelly Steinhoff describes as the "smoothest season yet."

Attendance numbers for 2013 are a bit of a mixed bag, with daily swim counts averaging 70 swimmers a day this year as opposed to 80 a day in 2012. In contrast, the number of children taking advantage of swimming lessons doubled. Last year, 16 children took lessons, while 32 attended this year.

The pool operated with only three lifeguards this year but those guards are what helped make the sea- son such a success in terms of operations. Zac Brown and Samura Miller are vet- eran guards at the Waitsburg pool with four and two year's experience, respec- tively. Tucker Alleman was a new addition to the staff.

"We had a really good group of lifeguards this year," said Steinhoff. "Two were experienced and knew how things worked, which made it easy. And the new addition fit in really well with the rest if the team. And the kids liked all the guards." Steinhoff is hoping for more applicants next year and is looking at the possibility of hiring an office manager who would strictly run the office and not require guard certification.

Lifeguard Zac Brown suggested that cooler water temperatures, resulting from a leaking liner in the shallow end of the pool may have played a role in lower swim counts this year. The liner is scheduled for replacement prior to the 2014 swim season.

The well-attended free swimming lessons are just one more thing that help make Waitsburg "one-of- a-kind". Through a grant from the Friends of the Waitsburg Pool, overseen by the Blue Mountain Community Foundation, swim- ming lessons are free to city residents. The fund was originated in 2007 by Dr. Roger Hevel and Mrs. Laura Jean Hevel, who have been the sole donors until recently

Coppei Coffee owner Allison Bond, learned of the fund earlier this year and committed to donate 10% of her shop's profits from the 5th day of every month. "Sometimes the fifth falls on a busy day and sometimes it doesn't, but it's been really fun to do," said Bond. "We were really hop- ing other businesses would jump on the bandwagon and match us in donating funds. Sometimes it's only $10 and sometimes it's $40, but if several businesses join in, it would all add up."

Laura Jean Hevel stressed that the fund was not set up to support the pool, which is operated and funded by the City, but to make sure that all kids who want to take lessons, are able to do so free of charge.

"Everyone needs to learn to swim," said Hevel. "It's a lot of fun, but it's also a safety measure. Every sum- mer kids would go to the river, and every year there would be deaths. It was very worrisome to us and we wanted to do what we could to help them be safe. When you have three or four kids you need to send to lessons, it can get expensive."

Initially, the lessons weren't limited to local residents. Hevel recalls admiring a grandmother from Milton-Freewater who would pick up her grand- children in Walla Walla, then pick up her grandchildren in Waitsburg - "five or six, altogether" - and bring them to the Waitsburg pool for lessons. "She gave up her time every morning and paid for gas to bring her grand- kids to lessons. The parents couldn't do it because they worked and it was too hard to bring them in," said Hevel.

The year that both the Prescott Pool and Memorial Pool in Walla Walla closed, Waitsburg received the over- flow, causing a shortage of funds for lessons. Though the City managed to fulfill the promise of free lessons that year, it became neces- sary to limit them to local residents in subsequent years.

In addition to providing swim lessons, the fund allows for money left over to be applied to capital expen- ditures and improvements. Once this swim season ends, the pool is facing some fairly significant costs, which in- clude replacing the leaking liner in the shallow end of the pool as well as purchas- ing a new heater and pump. City Administrator Randy Hinchliffe anticipates the expenses will run between $5000 and $10,000.

"At the moment, these are unfunded expenses," said Hinchliffe, "but we are going to try and cover them within our existing budget, if possible."

Hevel continues to dream big when it comes to the Waitsburg City Pool. "My dream is that sometime in the future we will have a swim team like we did in years past. Kids love the challenge of competition, come to the pool more often, practice more and learn to swim better. I know it would take some extra administra- tion and personnel," said Hevel. "We just need to right person to come along who is willing to pick that up."

In the meantime, resi- dents wishing to support the free swim lessons can mail checks, payable to the Friends of the Waitsburg Pool, to the Blue Mountain Community Foundation at Post Office Box 603, Walla Walla, WA 99361.