Members of City Council and Staff,
Menlo Swim and Sport is not just a place to get into a pool. It provides
significant community mental health benefits. Although swimming may sound
like an individual activity, the camaraderie is very important in
sustaining participation. Whether you take lessons, swim laps, participate
on a team or enjoy AquaFit, you are not surrounded by strangers. You chat
on the deck or in the locker room. You look forward to seeing people and
miss them when they are away. You celebrate joyous occasions and comfort
those who have experienced a significant disappointment. You track each
other’s progress and encourage achievement. You cheer those using the water
for rehabilitation after injury or surgery. You share jokes, anecdotes and
helpful hints. Like a virus these connections know no boundaries. These
bonds of fellowship cross over into the entire community. And when a
community is bonded together, its emotional health is heightened. There is
an attachment that is beyond dollar value. For a community that is bonded
together is a stronger, more resilient community. It is a community that
takes pride in itself. It is a community that is more likely to
participate in civic affairs. Those of us involved in Menlo Swim and Sport
take great gratification in the large community of people, from babies to
golden agers who cherish the facilities and its many programs developed by
Menlo Swim and Sport. I believe so strongly in this that in addition to
being a Masters Swimmer, I became a certified AquaFit instructor and am
more engaged than ever in its programs.
Sandra Bardas
1343 Hoover Street
Menlo Park, CA 94025
