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A local lifeguard's perspective: The pool became my summer home

By Joe, a former Chippewa Falls outdoor pool lifeguard, read during a May city council meeting.



I didn’t ever plan to be a lifeguard but once I became one so much changed for me. I got my first real summer job, working at the BF Willi pool when I was 16 in 2016. The pool became my summer home. I worked there every summer through 2019, two as assistant manager and as manager my last summer. I was getting ready for my last summer as manger in 2020 when Covid changed everything.


And now, the pool may be gone. My mom talks about Buni Willi and what an amazing person he was. He gave me an Optimist Youth Award when I was a 9th grader. I could tell he cared a lot about youth and our community. My mom shared how he raised the money for the pool. I was proud to carry on his legacy at the pool. I’m sad that his name will be lost if the pool is closed.

When I worked for parks and rec, I lifeguarded, taught swim lessons and tennis lessons. We had so many kids. Morning and evenings were lessons that helped kids learn to be safe in the water. Afternoons were for day cares and families to swim and have fun. Sometimes we even had private birthday parties. We thought it would be cool to have movie nights or water exercise classes or so many other things.

The pool is a great place for kids and families and it’s a great place to work as a teen or young adult. We really worked hard and learned so much. We learned to be responsible and make sure people stayed safe. People told us we were role models for kids. Chippewa Falls needs places for kids and families to gather and have fun.

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