Now that a large new swimming pool is set to open in Aldergrove this coming May, enthusiasts are working on launching a new competitive swim club here.
Meg Herweier is working with Joanne Nicolato to establish the Aldergrove Summer Swim Club as a fully fledged member of the B.C. Summer Swim Association before the end of December.
To this end the two Aldergrove women have launched the Aldergrove Summer Swim Club page on Facebook, to drum up interest in the community and to begin to sign up registered members.
“We have a contest to name the new club and the Township of Langley has given us a couple of free passes to the Township pools to give as a prize for the winner,” said Herweier.
“We want something that is easy to say, says something about Aldergrove, is friendly, competitive and fast. Please send your name choices to our Facebook page, then please share the page to help us spread the word about the club.”
The name suggestions should also be unique and not copy other club names such as the Langley Flippers.
The naming contest closes Dec. 16 as Herweier and Nicolato want to register the club as a non-profit society before the end of the month, so they can begin to register youths for this coming summer competitive swimming season, May to August.
Herweier is a grandmother and semi-retired, but she has a long history of running swim clubs and schools, dating back to her teens in Toronto. She also established Aquatots Swim School at a private facility in Victoria in 1972, for students aged six months and up.
“I go swimming three or four times a week and take my granddaughter at least once a week. I want to encourage little kids to get into the sport, it’s one of the few sports you can do for a lifetime,” she said.
“The club will give kids a taste of swimming as a team sport, as well as an individual sport.”
As the BC Summer Swim Association says, swimming is an activity whose benefits last a lifetime and is unmatched in its potential for fitness and fun. That’s why summer swimming is a great choice for today’s kids and their families, as it provides a rich swim club experience that’s manageable for busy families, including those with kids who play other sports.
Affiliated clubs offer convenient practice times and locations, a flexible and manageable time commitment and a balance between achievement and fun.
While the Township will be offering swimming lessons at the pool, the club would offer the chance to train for, and compete in, sports such as competitive speed swimming, synchronized swimming and water polo, under the auspices of the BC Summer Swim Association.
“Young kids would benefit from stroke improvement and will do better in a short time with good coaching from the club.
“I’d also like to develop a masters’ club once we get the Aldergrove swim club going.”
Herweier and Nicolato are currently drawing up a business plan for the club so that the club can be registered and ready to sign up prospective members starting in January.
“I’m also going to talk to the Langley School District to see if we can distribute information about the club through the local schools.”
In the meantime interested families should join the club’s Facebook page to keep up to date on the club’s activities.
