Hello Menlo Park City Council.
My name is Stephanie Couch and I’ve been swimming at Burgess Pool for the past 15 years. Prior to joining Menlo Masters I swam and belonged to Peninsula Covenant Community Center in Redwood City. I switched teams and clubs because I knew Tim Sheeper and the quality of workouts he offered. I’ve not been disappointed and my swimming has improved due to his creative workouts.
Burgess pool is kept spotless due to their amazing maintenance staff, specifically Steve. ( I don’t know his last name). Steve takes huge pride in his job cleaning the deck, removing all debris, and cleaning the locker rooms. If you’ve ever seen Steve do his job, you’d know he takes pride in what he does and it shows in his work. I like a clean floor and clean bathroom and that’s what you get at Burgess.
When anyone walks through the doors whoever is working the front desk be it Tommy, Justin or John, you are greeted with a hello or good morning. It feel so good to be acknowledged each and every time, there’s no sneaking in! On that note, it feels safe there. Most of us don’t lock up our belongings. It’s due in part because we all know each other in the mornings. Whether I come at 6am or 7am, we all chat in the locker room. It’s a place of community. Believe it or not, some swimmers will come and sit in the locker room just to see their friends if they are injured or unable to swim. The environment created and the quality of people hired is ALL due in part to Tim Sheeper.
I coach and teach kids to swim for a living, not at Burgess but on my own. When the kids I teach grow out of lessons most do not want to compete. Tim Sheeper and Bruce Smith teamed up to create “The Bridge Program”. The Bridge Program is a bridge from swim lessons to swim team. I’ve moved many of my kids on to the program. The only problem with it is they fill up fast! Kids cannot get strong as a swimmer unless they move out of a backyard swimming pool and into a 25 yard pool. The kids that I have launched all love the coaches there. I also am head coach of Woodside High School’s swim team and I have several kids from Menlo PASA who say Bruce Smith is their favorite coach of all time. Menlo Mavericks used to be a dead swim team in the minds of many of us. However, gaining Bruce Smith to run PASA and the Bridge program is like winning the lottery! My daughter swam with Bruce when he was at PASA DKS and she said he was the best coach she’s ever had and asked why did we wait so long to find him? SO, both the Bridge program and PASA program will be run by a very seasoned coach and one that is highly regarded by all of us in the swim community. Bruce is also head of Menlo Atherton High School and head of our league. It is because of the relationship between Tim and Bruce that the two are teamed up yet separate at Burgess. You see, Tim draws the best people because of who he is. Some may see him as quiet and stand offish, but if you really know Tim, you know he is a man of integrity. He cares about everyone. He favors no one. He brings excellence with him, a true human being.
Menlo Masters is a community of people who love swimming, but without Tim, Menlo Masters may not carry on like it is right now. Finding a head coach is hard. Any swim team will tell you that finding a head coach that does his or her job well, is a priceless commodity.
Tim also runs Team Sheeper Tri -Team. I raced as a Triathlete for 10 years before having kids. I used to race amongst Tim as well. His tri-team loves Tim just like the masters team does. Tim brings expertise, motivation, unity and passion. He loves what he does and he does it better than anyone.
I think you understand at this point that I think you have the right person for the job right now. Burgess Pool is thriving because of Tim Sheeper. He is a true leader, he manages the pool so well and his staff stays because he is able to create an atmosphere of community within a public space.
Thank you for reading my thoughts.
Stephanie Couch
Menlo Masters Member
