Otter Newsletter—Week of July 24, 2005

Congratulations to every member of the Otter Family for a successful championship weekend.  First, to our swimmers, way to go!  Many of you swam to personal bests in both your individual as well as relay events, and our team qualified many swimmers for the All-Star Meet on Sunday.  Second, to the parents and grandparents who helped prepare, run, and tear down after Sunday’s meet, we can’t say enough good things about you.  You made it possible for us to host a meet we have never attempted to run before.  Conservative estimates place Sunday’s crowd at at least 1400 people.   Yes, there were a few minor glitches, but you rose to the occasion and served the kids (which is what age-group swimming is all about!)  One parent from another team and division had this to say: “You made all of our kids feel like all-stars today.”   What more could anyone ask?  (From a financial standpoint, our team did very well.  Come to the banquet to hear the numbers.)   Special thanks to our meet director, Kris Fox and her committee heads, and, especially, to the parents of swimmers who weren’t even participating in the meet and yet came and served our team in various ways.  You are a fantastic bunch.

Practice this week continues only for those who qualified for the MID-CAP meet on Saturday, July 30, at Hershey.  There is only one practice, which begins at 7:30.  The MID-CAP meet starts at 9:00 am.  We have not yet been assigned a warm-up time.  Jim will inform swimmers of the start-up time at practice, or you can check the MPSL or Otters websites later this week.

14’s and Unlimiteds are invited to a pool and volleyball party on Monday, July 25, from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at the pool.   Please RSVP to Jim or Mary by Friday, July 22.

End-of-Season Awards Banquet is set for this Wednesday, July 27, at 6:00 p.m. at the pool  pavilions.  Bring a covered dish item and a dessert, as well as lawn chairs.  We will eat, recognize our swimmers, and then swim.  If you qualified for the All-Star Meet, please arrive early at 5:30 p.m.  A Daily News photographer will be on hand to photograph our All-Star swimmers for the newspaper.