Soldiers adjusting to new role as lifeguards

By Walt Johnson, Fort Carson MountaineerJuly 8, 2010

Soldiers adjusting to new role as lifeguards
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Soldiers adjusting to new role as lifeguards
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Soldiers adjusting to new role as lifeguards
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FORT CARSON, Colo.-Sometimes the best laid plans work out well on paper, but not so well in practice.

The plan to have Soldiers as lifeguards at the Fort Carson outdoor swimming pool is turning out to be just the opposite of that.

After just a few short weeks, the plan to have Soldiers serve as lifeguards at the post

outdoor pool is turning into an unqualified success, said Don Armes, Fort Carson aquatics director.

Armes said the plan was to get the Soldiers to augment the operations at the outdoor pool this summer while his normal lifeguard contingent was being used at other Directorate of

Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation facilities. The plan has turned into such a success that Armes said he could not be happier.

"So far I am getting a lot of positive comments from the customers (on the lifeguards). The Soldiers we have working here are very polite and very courteous. One of the really good things about this program is the Soldiers are always on time for work and ready to give the customers here a great pool experience. I think this is a program that is definitely going to work. The Soldiers give us a maturity level in the lifeguard's portion of our program that is definitely something we need. We have also seen that the Soldiers take a lot of pride in what they are doing. They know when they come here they come here to work. You can see the difference in the way they keep the facility clean and the way they keep up with all their assignments. I'm extremely happy and glad to have these 14 guys with us," Armes said.

No matter how happy Armes is to have the Soldiers, it may not be near as happy as the Soldiers feel in what they believe is part of their military obligation. The Soldiers, to a man, believe that being a lifeguard is not only helping them enjoy a summer of helping out at the pool but will also benefit them in their military endeavors. The Soldiers cite the ability to get in their physical training requirements with the benefits of helping the Mountain Post community enjoy a great summer experience and upgrade their military lifesaving training.

"I looked at this as another opportunity to something as a military member that a lot of people may not be able to do. I saw an opportunity to spend the summer being a lifeguard and do something else to serve our community. I get to be a lifeguard and I also get to enjoy the summer sun, sit around in shorts and sandals and enjoy the people on post," Kurt Cowrey said.

"We are (combat-lifesaver) qualified, which is combat for the battlefield. The training we have gotten here has been an extension of that training," said Jordan Studer. "This training has broadened our medical knowledge a little more than just being CLS qualified. I now can help my buddy Cowrey on the battlefield or if he crashes on a bike on post. Also now I feel confident I can take care of my three-year-old son if he were to jump in the pool and be under duress. It's not just being a lifeguard that benefits us, it's being able to apply this training to other aspects of our personal life and military life."

The Soldiers have already recorded two lifesaving operations. In the first they had to save a young boy who came off the high diving board wrong. He kept sinking and was struggling because he got vertigo in the water. In the second lifesaving operation a young lady didn't realize how deep the water was and she swallowed too much water and wasn't able to make it back to the top. She sank to the bottom of the pool and after the lifeguards got her back to the surface, she was all right.

Each of the Soldiers said the program is a great opportunity and if it is available next summer, there will be 14 volunteers at the head of the line ready to perform the mission.