Wilmot Aces offer lifeline to former SWA swimmers
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Dwindling registration may have finally torpedoed the South Western Aquatics in the fall of 2016.
When SWA, which had formed back in 2003 after an amalgamation of the Tillsonburg Aquatic Torpedoes, which had it own history going back to at least the early 1970s, and the Piranhas of Woodstock - announced it was shutting down it left dozens of swimmers without a team. You cannot compete at Swim Ontario/Canada sanctioned events unless you are affiliated with a club.
A few former SWA parents reached out to Tillsonburg's Joni Maerten-Sanders, head coach of the Wilmot Aquatic Aces based out of the Wilmot Recreation Complex, Baden/New Hamburg, in the Township of Wilmot.
"I found out about a week before it happened, but I don't think I've been informed totally what went on," said Maerten-Sanders in mid-November. "All I know is that I got a call... 'Is there anything you can do to help?' I said, "There is nothing I can do at this point in time. Your best bet is to call a general membership meeting - I don't know if they did."
Maerten-Sanders grew up swimming with TAT, later coaching seven years in Tillsonburg, and then seven years in Woodstock.
"When I left Woodstock in, I think, October 2000 - I had put 14 years into those two teams. All of a sudden they amalgamated. I had almost 200 swimmers in Woodstock when I left, and Tillsonburg, alone, had 100-and-something at that point.
"Paul (Armstrong) kept it pretty strong," said Maerten-Sanders, recalling a former SWA coach who left for Saskatchewan in September 2009.
At the time of shutting down, Maerten-Sanders heard the club had about 50 swimmers - Woodstock and Tillsonburg - combined.
"It could have been a bit more with the last registration, but I know they were around 50..."
There was a drastic shortfall at the younger ages, she noted.
"That's what we're hoping to save. The Olympics were fantastic for swimming, absolutely incredible. At New Hamburg, we were at 80 kids last year and now we're 110 right now. And with the kids (from SWA) we're getting closer to the 130-mark now.
"It should have been a big year for SWA... what went on, I don't really know. I don't need to know. I want to stay out of the political stuff."
Maerten-Sanders went to the Wilmot Aces to see if they could do something for the swimmers.
"I had to take it to my board to approve. My president immediately said 'let's do what we can.'"
That decision was influenced by an emergency in Wilmot when their pool unexpectedly shut down for repairs last May and three clubs came to their aid.
"Immediately, our club said 'yes, we'll do what we can.' Once we knew we could get pool time (in Woodstock), the board approved it right away. They were even interested in saving some of the swim meets that SWA had on the table, but it just didn't work out."
A few of the ex-SWA swimmers joined the Ingersoll Speed Sharks, including Hailey Granger.
"Ingersoll's probably the better solution for some of these kids," said Maerten-Sanders, "but Ingersoll has a four-lane pool..."
Ideally, she would have negotiated pool times in Tillsonburg, but available Tuesday/Thursday time slots clashed with Wilmot practices.
"I can't put anything here (Tillsonburg) at this time, but Woodstock's (Mondays and Fridays) times fit to give me something to work with them right now. Long term, maybe Tillsonburg can do something for us."
Some of the older, competitive swimmers are training in both Woodstock and New Hamburg.
"Amy (Meharg) is swimming with us now, Dalton (Sanderson)... Zan (Papadakos).
"We have a 'house league' program and competitive program. If you choose house league, you still get swim meets, it's very much like house league hockey - we do some dual meets and there's a championship meet. If that's what you want out of swimming, that's wonderful and we have that for you. The competitive program gears toward regionals, provincials, nationals, with training camps, and all that... Those who are in the competitive will swim in New Hamburg as well."
Initially, about 10 former SWA swimmers were training in Woodstock and New Hamburg.
"We're hoping those kids who were swimming at the lower end, and just coming into swimming, would want to come back - both from Tillsonburg and Woodstock."
By January, she was seeing more younger swimmers at the Woodstock Southside Pool.
"My ultimate goal, when I approached people from both communities, is I think we'd like to see swimming continue. I put 14 years into these two communities to build swimming - I don't want to see it gone."
According to Swim Ontario rules, to apply for a new club a full business plan has to be submitted (including incorporation plans, pool times, recruiting swimmers) by March. Swim Ontario has the summer to make a decision on applications.
"We will finish this season for sure," said Maerten-Sanders, who is volunteering the extra hours in Woodstock, that she is "not being paid anything extra to help these kids out.
"Our club wants to make sure that it pays itself, our doesn't want to pay to satellite a team if it's not going to work. As long as we have the kids we can start building and we can book more pool time. Then, in the future, based on what's happening, hopefully programs can develop in both places again."