AROUND THE PARK AGAIN By Sharon Lee Tegler
Lots of news from Severna Park Community Center this week. Particularly exciting for regular lap swimmers was the long awaited reopening of the community center’s main pool. Though required by COVID guidelines to swim by appointment only, Ingrid Savicnac, Tegler brothers, Eric and Jan, and Heroes of Tomorrow fitness program trainee Connor McNulty, were happy to be back,
To comply with Governor Hogan’s Stay At Home Order of March 23, the entire center was forced to shut down…..which turned out to be fortuitous for the pool.
Instead of following SPCC’s normal practice of shutting down for a week in August to drain and clean the main pool, the staff chose to do it during the shutdown. Once drained , it was discovered that vital repairs were needed for a cracked expansion joint according to community center executive director Sarah Elder. After brief consideration, SPCC’s board decided to go ahead with a total renovation.
Shelley Beigel, director of programs, showed off the many renovations Tuesday afternoon. She also addressed the safety procedures instituted by SPCC’s aquatics program to comply with COVID-19 guidelines.
“In addition to replacing the expansion joint, the entire pool was resurfaced with all new racing tiles,” Beigel said. “White coping stones were installed around the edge of the pool along with cobalt blue tiles. For the first time, we installed steps into the pool with a handrail and we repainted the walls.”
White coping stones were installed around the edge of the pool……. 
….along with cobalt blue tiles.
She said social distancing has been implemented by limiting the number of swimmers and requiring them to schedule an appointment. With fewer people, the lanes can be appropriately spaced apart.
While completely renovated and refreshed, the locker rooms and showers may not currently be used by swimmers. They must arrive showered and dressed to swim and must place their belongings on a single assigned chair.
Signs are posted reminding everyone to stay in their swim lanes and bright blue cones at six foot intervals around the edge of the pool encourage proper distancing.
Lifeguards are on duty throughout swim sessions and must wear masks except when required to enter the water for rescue or assistance.
Like all the lifeguards, Nathan Rosner feels it’s great to be back on duty. He actually returned as lifeguard for SPCC’s popular therapy pool prior to the main pool reopening. The therapy pool (a greatly needed community resource) didn’t require renovations so was able to open in late June.
Pointing out floats, kick boards and other flotation devices swimmers may avail themselves of, Rosner said the equipment is sanitized after each use. Handrails, chairs and other surfaces are wiped down after each session.
McNulty said he doesn’t mind observing the restrictions.
“I don’t mind needing to make and appointment. I’m just glad to be able to swim again.,” he said.
Swimming a steady breast stroke down the length of the far left lane, long-time pool user Ingrid Savicnac seemed in her element.
“I’m so happy. I really missed swimming,” she said.
Their first time back, the Tegler brothers, who are normally river swimmers in the summer and pool swimmers throughout the winter, were particularly pleased.
“The water quality in all the rivers has been very up and down this summer because of algae blooms and runoff from the storms so it’s good to have the pool back as an option,” Jan said.
Not surprisingly, as the 1:30 to 2:30 group of swimmers were preparing to leave, another group with reservations were spaced six feet apart at the desk in the lobby waiting to sign in.
There’s more news from the Severna Park Community Center. Elder reports that the 25th Anniversary Gala scheduled for October at the Hilton Hotel has been postponed till spring because of concern about the pandemic.
“Instead, it’s being replaced by a Drive-By-Gala with a twist,” she said. “The event will be held at the community center from 3 to 5 pm on October 24. A gala committee led by Ellen Kleinknecht, Patt Haun and Diane Lebbedeff developed the unique twist on a virtual event to raise operating funds.”
Guests to the event will stay in their cars while being treated to live music, guest presenters and a “gala in a box” to take home. Included will be a gift certificate for $50 to one of the area’s fine restaurants, a small bottle of champagne and flute plus a delectable dessert from a local bakery. For information, visit https://www.spcommunitycenter.org/.
Talent Machine Company successfully stages “Children of Eden” despite daunting obstacles
Staging a musical with a cast of 30 plus young actors is challenging under any circumstances according to Talent Machine Company producer Judy Curbelo. To stage two such musicals in “the age of Covid-19” demands innovation, fortitude and adherence to strict guidelines. The company rose to the challenge.
TMC’s summer youth production of “Willy Wonka” and teen production of “Chlidren of Eden” were in the works since early January. With the easing of Stay At Home Orders and the acquisition of an outdoor venue, the productions could move ahead….. providing COVID-19 guidelines were followed.
“We’d made arrangements with the Anne Arundel County Fairgrounds for their spacious outdoor pavilion for both shows and completely followed their COVID-19 guidelines allowing for 100 socially-distanced audience members ,” Curbelo said.
“Willy Wonka” debuted to an enthusiastic audience July 17th – only to be mistaken by the Anne Arundel County Health Department for another theater’s production. Restrictions were imposed regardless. Though allowed to perform the show that evening, no further tickets could be sold and only small audiences were permitted for subsequent performances.
Thereafter, TMC’s board and staff members debated whether to continue with the “Children of Eden”. Since rehearsals were already well underway, they moved ahead.
Both Curbelo and director Bobby Smith said the obstacles were daunting and the process arduous and complex. The health department permitted “Children of Eden” to be performed provided it were referred to as “a project allowing the actors to practice their craft”. Tickets couldn’t be sold and audiences were limited to one person per cast member.
Performed last weekend before small audiences, the performance was extremely well received. It was filmed for possible use as a fundraiser.
The 31-member cast loved rehearsing and performing the musical in spite of the fact they they wore masks and remained socially distanced throughout the process. The actors, including Braden Andrew who played Adam and Lucy O’Brien who played Eve, expressed their frustration when they observed that sports activities weren’t subject to the same requirements for masks for players or spectators and were permitted unlimited crowd sizes.
A fundraiser may be in the offing for the non-profit Talent Machine Company at a later date and a venue is being sought for a holiday show. For updated information, visit https://talentmachine.com/ .
Kinder Farm Park cancels Harvest Festival
Park visitation has seen a remarkable increase throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the Friends of Kinder Farm Park made the difficult decision to cancel this year’s Harvest Festival. (The annual October event is the park’s most popular drawing thousands of attendees,) Among other events, there’s a good possibility that the popular Jingle Bell Hayride will be held on December 5. For information on upcoming events visit https://kinderfarmpark.org/.
If you enjoy keeping up with community news, click Subscribe.
Vielen danke, glad you enjoyed it. Hope you’ll click subscribe for more columns to come.