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Why Volunteer?
That’s a great question.
SCSC is a non-profit
organization, and pools cost more to maintain than fields of
grass.
It’s obvious, but sometimes we forget that little detail. We
have a fantastic facility - if you’ve travelled to other
pools you’ve seen firsthand how few facilities exist in the
state of Indiana that compare with the CAC. The size of our pool
allows us to run 10 short-course lanes simultaneously, which allows
us to host larger meets and attract larger clubs. Unlike other
sports, club participation in meets is completely optional. The
teams that come to our pool to compete are there because they chose
to be there. Hosting meets in Crawfordsville means less out-of-town
travel for you, but requires your participation to be
successful.
The people that "run" this club are parents just like you. Some of
us have children swimming on the team while others don’t.
Either way, we are volunteers who give our time so that the
children in our community can partcipate in a competitive swim
program. The funds collected pay for such things as our use of the
pool and associated equipment and staff, food and beverages for our
team events, and the awards we provide at home meets. Our use of
the CAC pool represents the single largest cost to SCSC, but we
enjoy a very low cost relative to other clubs, particularly those
in Indianapolis. It’s our ability to host meets at the CAC
that provides most of the funding to pay for pool usage. Without
home meets, team dues would be significantly higher.
It takes MANY volunteers to
run a swim meet.
But how many? Lets do some
quick math:
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Announcer, computer operator, timing system, runner,
scorer
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= (5) positions
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Concessions, hospitality, awards
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= (6) positions
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= (2) positions
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Head Timer, timers for 10 lanes (2 per lane)
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= (21) positions
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Subtotal:
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= 34 positions
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Number of sessions per meet
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= (5) sessions
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Grand Total:
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= 170 positions per meet
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You can’t be a
non-participant.
Swimming is an individual sport that requires participation at
multiple levels. As a club, we know we compete for your time with
other sports that generally require less commitment from you, the
parent. We also believe that swimming provides an entirely
different competitive experience than other, more team-oriented
sports, and allows the individual a greater opportunity to see
personal improvement and experience earned success. Because of our
facility and the calibur of our athletes, competitors come from
across the state (and sometimes from other states) to compete at
our meets. Our skill and hospitality have earned us the right to
host championship events right here in Crawfordsville.
We try to make
it easy. We really do.
While we believe its your duty to support your swim club, we also
realize you have many demands other than swimming. (We do, too.) We
try to structure our meets so that any volunteer can take a few
minutes away to watch their child swim. This year we’re
making an extra effort to train new parents on some of the more
technical positions like the computer operator, scorer, and timing
system operator. We want you to feel comfortable supporting your
club and working with other parents, while at the same time gaining
a better understanding and appreciation of your child’s
sport.
We
value your input - If you have an idea on how to make the club
better, please contact a board member or
coach!
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