July 18, 2008
Volume 3, Issue 1
The Wet Word
The CA Aquatics Newsletter
C o l u m b i a
A s s o c i a t i o n
A q u a t i c s
E XC E E D I N G T H E S TA N DA R D
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
Exceeding The Standard
1
Office
2
Guard Team
set to compete
2
Did you know?
3
Riddle ME This...
3
Keith’s Corner
3
Staff Events
4
At the time of print,
we have only had one Ellis and
Associates Audit, which means
we have two remaining for the
summer and two remaining for
the winter.
Our first Audit landed us in the
exceeds category, which is the
highest possible score awarded
for Ellis audits. For that, we
have congratulated the guards
involved and I would like to
congratulate the majority of
you, for exceeding the standard
on a daily basis. The Ellis Audit
is just a snapshot of our everyday lives in which we aim to
exceed the standard every minute of every day.
With two more Audits looming
we need to stay ever vigilant,
providing our guests with better
than average service, exceeding
the standard at every opportunity we get, whether that’s the
first or last sit of the day or a
simple mid day trash run. Be
world famous in all that you
do.
A few quick reminders of what
you are assessed on during outside Ellis audits.
•
•
Appearance –Sitting forward, rescue ready, in
proper uniform, shaded
and attentive.
10/20—Proper scanning
patterns, 5 minute strategy,
sunglasses, bottom scans.
•
Skills— All basic water
related skills, first—aid and
VAT drops.
These are just the main points
that the auditor will focus on if
you are being observed. If we
practice these items everyday,
then an Audit is simply a time
to show off.
Our goal at CA is to be nationally recognized as a facility that
Exceeds the standard everyday
and exceeds the standard every
Audit.
As July comes to a close and
the long hot summer takes its
toll, don’t forget that our members depend on us and they
don’t want average lifeguards.
Be world famous—Everyday!!
H OW TO S AV E A L I F E ( JAC K E T )
Very shortly you will soon see a
new addition to all of your
pools. This new member of our
staff will be our very own CA,
coast guard approved, lifejackets.
As an Ellis and Associates client, we are encouraged to provide these jackets to our mem-
bers, so we will comply. These
lifejackets will be available at
no cost to our members and
will hopefully be used to increase the enjoyment of swimming for our kids and their
families.
The lifejacket rule still applies,
which states that a supervising
body must remain within arms
reach of the vest wearer at all
times. The lifejacket is not a
green light to go anywhere in
the pool unsupervised. We will
have to make sure we educate
our members accordingly. So
coming to a pool near you,
lifejackets and smiling kids.
Page 2
The Wet Word
G UA R D T E A M O F F
Thursday July 24, the CA
guard team will head to Wildwood New Jersey to compete in
this years Ellis and Associates
Lifeguard Competition.
Last year, CA placed fifth in
the world after making it to the
international finals in Chicago,
Illinois. This years team will
have to place in the top three in
New Jersey to advance to this
years final, once again held in
Chicago at Six Flags.
This years team has been completely restructured with only
one remaining team member
TO
REPRESENT CA!
from last years fifth place team.
Jason Bazell leads the team as
the only returner. He will be
competing with Patrick Chamberlain Rachel Zimmerman and
Marina Metzler The team alternates are Thomas Stavely and
Adrian Gibbs.
The competition format breaks
up our competitors and places
them on teams with Ellis
guards from other facilities and
judges them on their ability to
“make it work” in very difficult
scenarios. The points they collect with their new team are
transferred to CA’s total points.
On the final morning of competition, the team finally gets to
take on a scenario as a whole
and show off their amazing
skills.
The competition is mentally
and physically draining but an
amazing experience for all involved, showing them they are
a part of something much,
much bigger than just being a
guard in Columbia.
The team is coached by Erin
Cohen, Kelly Baugh, Jess
Noyes and Allison Ziegler.
L I F E G UA R D S P O T L I G H T – C H E L S E A “ L I F E S AV E R ” W AT K I N S
Chelsea may be a first year guard this summer, but this recent Hammond
graduate has already made a name for herself. When asked for her availability for the
past schedule, Chelsea replied with “ Oh, I’m available”. She is always willing to
work, and when we need another guard, Chels somehow finds her way to the pool in
less than 5 minutes. Not only is Ms. Watkins a great guard, but her witticisms and
humor make working with her all the better. Whether she is dancing in the office, or
cracking jokes at the staff table, Chelsea has befriended our entire staff. Chelsea
“saves our lives” everyday by always being proactive, on time, friendly, and a hard
worker. We only wish that Chelsea had come to CA sooner, but we are more than
happy to have her with us now.
By Michelle Nash and Maggie Johnson
P.S.—Chelsea was also a bright star during her certification class. I am glad to see her continuing her amazing
ways.—
THE OFFICE
It seems as though the word has
not percolated through the gossip train as quickly as I had
hoped. The office has right
sized uniforms for all, if you did
not know.
For those of you in wrong sized
suits and fading outerwear,
your lucky day is here. Please
stop in and see our lovely office
ladies (or man) and get your
suits today. First come first
serve as always.
In other Uniform news, new
shirts will be making appearance in the coming days. These
shirts are the winning design
handed in by the SWP/LFP
cluster at the beginning of the
— ( N O T T HE T V S H O W)
summer. That cluster will receive these shirts free of charge
while the rest of you will be
able to purchase them for a
whopping $5 per shirt. Sizes
will be limited so come early
and purchase in bulk.
And as always thank your office staff often.
Volume 3, Issue 1
Page 3
DID
The word "listen" contains the same letters
as the word "silent".
YO U
K N OW ?
your gonna try this !!! )
A snail can sleep for 3
years. ( wow, lucky
chap eh ? )
A 'jiffy' is an actual unit
of time for 1/100th of a
second.
Electricity doesn't move
through a wire but
through a field around
the wire.
A hippopotamus can
run faster than a man.
Didaskaleinophobia is
the fear of going to
school.
"Almost" is the longest
word in the English language with all the letters in alphabetical order.
It is impossible to lick
your elbow. ( We know
RIDDLE
The strongest muscle in
the body is the tongue.
The dot on top of the
letter I is called a
“tittle”.
The human heart creates enough pressure
while pumping to squirt
blood 30 feet.
Polar Bears are left
handed.
Butterflies taste with
their feet.
ME THIS!!
C AN Y O U G E T AL L T H R E E ? ?
Black I am and much admired.
Men seek me until they’re tired.
When they find me, they break
my head
And take from me my resting
bed.
What am I?
Hello my amazing friends.
Congratulations for making it
past halfway in the summer and
I would like to pass on my
thanks to all of you for your
hard work and dedication to
guarding. To date, we have had
zero drowning events and very
few incidents at our pools. This
is an accomplishment directly
related to your hard work and
attentiveness and I thank you.
I wanted to take this opportunity to tell you all how grateful
When I appear I seem mysterious,
But when I’m explained I’m
nothing serious.
When I unknown to you, I’m
something.
When I’m known to you, I’m
nothing.
When I point up it’s bright,
But when I point down it’s
dark.
What am I?
What am I?
I am for the job that you do
everyday. I realize that most of
the time someone is telling you
what you can do better or a
member is telling you what they
are not happy about, but as
managers and supervisors it is
our job to pursue perfection,
because if I know that my
guards are performing perfect
scans everyday, no one can
drown.
In that pursuit of the perfect
day we sometimes lose sight of
the great job we do, day in and
day out. We sometimes don’t
always say “Thank you”, quite
enough or pat you on the back
for picking up a shift or working just a little bit longer.
We focus on the negative because we know that if you
screw up, someone can die and
I don’t want you to have to
bear that weight. So know that
when I tell you to tuck in your
shirt , I am really saying ,
“Thank You!!”
KEITH'S
CORNER
Staff Events
C o l u m b i a
A q u a t i c s
A s s o c i a t i o n
Columbia Association
9450 Gerwig Lane
Columbia, Maryland 21046
USA
Phone: 410.312.6332
Fax: 410.312.6320
E-mail: Aquatics@columbiaassociation.com
www.columbiaassociation.com/aquatics
We are on the Web!http://www.
Columbia association.com/aquatics
Anyone wishing to contribute ideas or articles to the
Wet Word for publication should see Keith in the office. This newsletter is for guards by guards so feel
free to chip in.
I will accept nominations for “Lifeguard spotlight” at
anytime. Please keep the submissions to less than 300
words and try to include a photo if possible.
- Keith
“Providing the best in Aquatics.”
Riddle me this?
1. Coal
2. A Riddle
3. A Light Switch
OFF,
OFF
Ladies and gentleman it’s show time. The 1st annual talent show has been moved to Sunday August 3rd at the Slayton House. To date, not too many of our talented guards have signed up for their slot on stage to ooh and ahh us with their amazing skill. Perhaps it’s because they are scared, or perhaps it is because they do not know about the $100 first prize. B ROA DWAY !
Whatever the reason, please contact our talent coordinator at your earliest convenience so we can pre‐
pare your equipment, music and time slot. song, crazy human tricks, spoken word, and unicycle juggling. If you have a talent not listed, just contact Brooks for approval and you’ll be fine. Contact Brooks at Brooks.whiteford@columbia
association.com to let him know what talent you will be sharing. Remember that this is a time to wow your fellow employees and show them what you can do when not wearing your super hero lifeguard uniform. More im‐
portantly it is all for fun and meant to allow us to laugh and ooh over good and “questionable” talent. Anything goes n this first ever show. We will accept any and all talents such as musical, dance routines,