Blairgowrie pool reopens as volunteers celebrate community milestone
Local residents dive in to celebrate a major milestone as a dedicated volunteer group turns a challenging project into reality.
The Blairgowrie pool opened its gates to residents and supporters on Saturday, with volunteers saying the long road to get there was worth it.
The open day was hosted by the Blairgowrie Community Association (BCA), whose co-directors are Mark Scherr, Harold Flashman and Margie Roper. Scherr said the pool is the group’s main project at the moment, adding that organisers hope to draw visitors from beyond Blairgowrie. “Today we’re having a nice big open day for the community and our supporters, and hopefully for people from other areas as well, not only from Blairgowrie,” he said.
Read more: Residents flock to Linden Swimming Pool
Scherr said the work was never easy because the project relied on community funds. He credited local people who have backed the pool financially. “It’s always a challenge when you’re working with the community funds. We have some very, very good people in the community who help us with the funding. They look after us and keep us going whenever we need funds,” he said.
Keeping the pool clean is the biggest ongoing challenge, he said. Although the group is run by volunteers, two full-time staff members work to keep the facility running while the rest of the team helps where possible.
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“We try our best, we just try and keep it going. A lot of hours, a lot of sometimes disappointment, a lot of frustration, but at the end of the day, what we want to see is happy children splashing in the water and enjoying themselves,” Scherr said.
When asked how it felt to reach the finish line, Scherr said he was pleased with what he saw early in the day, even though only one swimmer was in the water. “I know it’s early, I can see one person in the pool already, but the pool is beautiful and blue. The weather’s playing its part. The grounds are looking clean, and, hopefully, now the people are just going to start coming in and enjoy a beautiful summer’s day in Johannesburg,” he said.
Scherr said the pool is not the group’s only focus. “We try to make the community better,” he said. “Not only the swimming pool, we spend a lot of time on other projects as well, but, hopefully, this swimming pool can be used by far and wide and the community will enjoy it.”
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