Gearing up for a successful aquatic season
By Terri Fisher and Jennifer Schmitt
“Tweet, tweet, tweet.” “Call 911.” “Grab me the backboard.” These are some of the sounds you’ll hear on the pool deck during the annual, preseason Lifeguard Bootcamp at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point in North Carolina.
For the past 14 years, prior to opening for Memorial Day weekend, Lifeguard Bootcamp has been operating from Monday through Friday with opening day on Saturday. Because the majority of staff members are students who have been busy with studies and extracurricular activities, that time was determined to be the best to get everyone’s head back in the game. It’s also a great opportunity to encourage the lifeguards, both new and returning, to train as a team, get to know each other, and learn to trust each other. Because there are three pools to operate—each one different—time is arranged to train at each facility. By Friday, which is also Administration Day, everyone is tired but operating like a well-oiled machine. Twenty hours of training ends with a big potluck dinner. Morale is at its peak, and when the pool opens the following day, everyone will receive their pay for all of the hard work. It doesn’t get any better than that!