HomeMy WebLinkAbout112023 email Sink or Swim_ALERT: BE CAUTIOUS This email originated outside the organization. Do not open attachments or click on links if you are not expecting them.
Dear Commissioners-
We support moving forward with a public pool that meets the needs of our community, especially our kids.
We moved here for a job in the maritime economy. Some years prior, one of us sailed here and the other went to the boat school, and we both wanted to return to raise a family. We had
a two-month-old baby and one of the first things we did was sign the Jeffco aquatic coalition petition for a new pool. We’ve since had a second child. In that time boiler and roof issues
have been substituted for staffing issues. Since the pandemic the pool is not open at times that many kids can access and it’s hard for them to be in the pool’s cold water for long.
Our son is now eight, our daughter is five, and we have been talking about a new pool their whole lives. Turns out it’s been talked about for a quarter century, and as we saw on the
city tour last week, very soon there could be no public pool at all.
The ability to swim is a fundamental safety skill for all kids and especially for our community surrounded by water. Our frigid air and water temperatures mean many kids are without
free or accessible natural water to learn. This has been compounded by the pandemic and labor shortages, leading to several years of limited local pool hours and waitlists for lessons.
The impact is that relatively few of our kids are able to swim. We don’t know many families with strong swimmers and the kids that can swim (enough to not drown) have done so because
of driving to Port Angeles or Bainbridge on a regular basis, burning gas and spending our money outside the county.
We love this community but it’s not an easy place for families. Support for working families – including investment in and opportunities for our children – is what attracts and keeps
those staffing our hospital, businesses, schools and marine trades. We are asking for a public pool so that the kids in our county can learn to swim.
Please support the recommendation for a new county pool. For our kids. For our community. It is an investment for a thriving community.
Kate and Ryan Chadwick