Picatinny Arsenal celebrated a major milestone on July 28, welcoming the 1,000,000th guest to the installation’s now 22-year-old Frog Falls Aquatic Park.
The recognition coincidentally took place on National Water Park Day, a day dedicated to the celebration of the unique attractions waterparks offer especially during the height of summer.
Shannon Zaremba of Sparta, and her two boys, Gavin and Dillion, were surprised as they approached the park’s ticket window.
The excitement of the surprise and their reaction was caught on camera. Watch here.
The family received goodie bags along with five free passes to the park, to which Shannon states she will be giving to friends or family who have been wanting to tag along.
The Frog Falls Aquatic Park, which opened in 2000, cost $3.9 million to build, and represented an unprecedented historical commitment by the Army to "share" resources, land and customers for the betterment of two communities, one military and the other civilian.
The partnered community recreational pool was co-operated by Picatinny and Rockaway Township in what was a 15-year agreement.
The partnership agreement was formally dissolved in 2016. Picatinny Arsenal now fully owns and operates the aquatic park independently as part of the Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation (FMWR) program.
“This is an incredible milestone representing a lot of hard work and dedication of personnel who have found creative solutions to build, maintain and grow our Frog Falls community over the last twenty plus years,” said Andrew Ciccolella, Director of FMWR.
Operating Memorial Day through Labor Day weekends, the water park features more than 520,000 gallons of water adventures, and offers two high-velocity slides, six 25-meter lap pools, a zero-depth entry leisure pool, a lazy river and a child activity pool.
“This quality of life program has had a meaningful impact on our Soldiers and Families here at Picatinny Arsenal. It is wonderful to see how this resource can be shared with local residents to the benefit of all,” Ciccolella said.
“Frog Falls is a very special place and has been part of many happy memories for our community members and families. It’s our goal to sustain this park for a very long time and welcoming another million visitors to experience what we believe is the best family water park in New Jersey.”
Picatinny's Frog Falls Aquatic Park was ranked the number one public swimming pool in New Jersey in 2011 and has also been featured in World Water Park Magazine.
Frog Falls is a membership only facility open to Active Duty, Reserve and National Guard Military Personnel and their dependents; Picatinny Civilian Employees and their dependents, Contractors working on Picatinny, as well as the General Public.
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