DAZE WORK: Aquatic center lifeguard situation ahead of the curve

Courtesy photo

Taking more than its share of lumps in recent years, the Greencastle Aquatic Center has endured as a series of unfortunate circumstances have threatened its viability.

First came construction delays on the big renovation, following by closure due to COVID and then lifeguard staffing issues that threatened to delay opening and reduced the summer swim schedule to five days a week last year with no swim lessons offered.

With that negative history in hand, it’s hard to believe things could turn around so quickly and pool and park officials be so confident heading into the 2023 season -- with the pool opening just 20 days away -- that they’re destined to make the aquatic center great again.

And let’s give credit where credit is due. The persistence of Assistant Park Director Chrysta Snellenberger and the addition of Assistant Aquatic Center Director Matt Williams -- a beloved high school teacher many of the kids already know -- can’t be discounted. By all accounts, they are easily two of the biggest reasons for renewed optimism as we head into the 2023 swim season.

Almost all the lifeguards who worked for the city last year enjoyed the experience and are returning along with a few more additions to swell the ranks to 24 guards overall, which is considered a full complement for the season. A bump in pay by the city probably hasn’t hurt either. Meanwhile, interest has been received from a few other would-be guards who probably would be used as emergency backups.

At this point, kudos are certainly warranted since the City of Greencastle situation is way ahead of the curve this time.

Looking back, a couple years of social distancing during the pandemic is considered a leading cause of the lifeguard shortage, making for fewer opportunities for training to become guards or to recertify, which lifeguards have to do biennially.

The American Lifeguard Association expects the so-called “Great Lifeguard Shortage of 2022” to get even worse this year, which belies even further Greencastle’s present standing. According to the organization, more than a third of the nation’s 309,000 public pools were impacted by either curtailed hours, reduced programs or outright closures last year.

In Chicago, for example, no guards were posted along Lake Michigan beaches last summer and swimmers were greeted with signs stating: “Swim at your own risk.” In Indianapolis, a dozen neighborhood pools were shuttered for the summer due to the dearth of guards.

Greencastle isn’t alone in boosting pay for lifeguards, and some cities are even offering big incentives in the hope of attracting candidates. Phoenix, for example, has offered a $3,000 sign-on bonus.

Lifeguards, of course, have traditionally been teenagers, ranging from 15-year-old high schoolers to twentysomethings on summer vacation from college. Overall, young people who don’t need a salary large enough to pay for housing or other big expenses.

I mean, what teenager won’t want a summer job where you can make some money while getting a tan and spending the summer in your swimsuit and your Oakley sunglasses? Trust me, I know there’s more to it than that. Both of my daughters were lifeguards from the moment they were eligible to do so at the city pool after volunteering at an earlier age to assist with the learn-to-swim program (speaking of which is being revived this summer thanks to the generosity of Mary and Paul Bretscher, who will train and fund the instructors).

There is also plenty of stress involved watching the water for youngsters in distress and plenty of hard work in cleaning up each night but it sure beats slicing baloney at the corner deli or sweating up a storm on the loading dock at the local manufacturing plant in my hometown like I did for four summers.

Certainly I would have loved being a lifeguard but when you have fair skin like I do, I’d have lasted one day in that summer sun. Would have been broiled like a lobster the first day and turned into a giant blister the next.

So it’s too late for me to join up, for sure. Besides, I don’t think they’re making sunscreen SPF 3000 yet.

But enjoy your summer at the Greencastle Aquatic Center. And let’s give credit where credit is due ... It sure sounds like they’ve got things covered this year.