By Nick Diamantides, Staff Writer
Pools of Hope–the nonprofit organization that offers low-cost aquatic therapy to the elderly as well as children and adults with all sorts of disabilities and injuries–is one of Long Beach’s best kept secrets. “The problem is we don’t want to be a secret,” said Pat Dixon, the organization’s executive director. “We want everyone to know about us and the benefits of aquatic exercise.”
Last Saturday, Pools of Hope held its first-ever Aqua Walk–an event designed to raise funds for the continuance and expansion of the programs offered at the facility in North Long Beach. About 150 people attended. Adult Aqua Walk participants paid a $15 registration fee and children paid $7.50. In addition, many of the participants had sponsors who agreed to donate certain amounts. The “aqua walk” consisted of a walk inside the shallow pool along its perimeter.
Dixon said she and her staff were hoping to raise $10,000, but the event only brought in $6,000. “Money from the Aqua Walk is still coming in, and we won’t know how much we actually raised for a while,” she added.
She stressed, however, that Pools of Hope could not exist without the donations of individuals and organizations. “We need to get more support from the community,” she said. “I think that support will come as more people find out what we do.”
Pools of Hope has an Olympic-size swimming pool at 6801 Long Beach Boulevard–about two blocks south of the Compton/Long Beach boundary line. The pool’s water temperature is kept at 91 to 94 degrees Fahrenheit so as to be very comfortable for people with physical challenges. The facility also has ramps and water wheelchairs to help clients get in and out of the water easily.
“All of our staff are certified lifeguards, including our water exercise instructors,” Dixon said. “The pool has group exercise sessions as well as one-on-one training.”
She explained that while her staff conducts the group sessions, a local physical therapy company provides the individual instruction for clients with special needs. “The one-on-one training costs extra, but we usually are able to bill it to the client’s insurance if the therapy is prescribed by a doctor,” Dixon added.
Pools of Hope clients pay a $65-per-year membership fee and $2 every time they use the pool. “Most of our clients come here twice a week, and we have 300 to 350 people using the pool on any given week,” Dixon said. “It’s the donations we receive that enable us to provide these services at such unbelievably low rates.” She added that, for various reasons, about half of the pool’s clients are exempt from paying any fees at all.
Dixon noted that because most people in the water weigh only about one tenth of their weight on land, they can perform exercises in the water that they would not be able to do otherwise. “We have clients with all sorts of disabilities and injuries,” she said. “Some of them have significantly reduced their weight by coming here regularly for exercises.”
One of those is Byron Kenney, a senior. “I have lost over 200 pounds thanks to exercising in these warm waters,” he said. “My doctors are amazed at how healthy I am.”
Another client, Evelyn Peoples, noted that the pool exercise program has become a very important part of her life. “I have been coming to the pool for over 10 years and I absolutely love it,” she said. “The pool has given me back my life after hip surgery.”
California Pools of Hope’s oldest client is Harold Coon who will turn 98 next month.
Children with autism, cerebral palsy and other disabilities also regularly exercise in the pool.
The pool’s clients of all ages participated in Saturday’s activities, billed as the Evelyn du Pont Swim Show and Circle of Hope Aqua Walk. In addition to raising funds, the event showcased the athletic abilities of the clients and demonstrated how the aquatic exercise program has improved the lives of many people.
“There is no other place like California Pools of Hope,” said Val Lerch, 9th District Long Beach City Councilman and host of the event. “Miracles happen in the water every day, and this is so inspiring.”
