The Wakefield Aquatic Center is open today because of a stubborn effort by several people in the community to get a new pump.
After a year of closure due to COVID-19, a couple of Wakefield Aquatic Center Board Members, the Mayor and a council-person decided this summer's pool experience will be experienced this year.
"We heard a lot of things about the availability of a pump and the amount of time it would take to get it in Wakefield," Pool board member Teresa Soderberg said. "We as a board and members of the council and the Mayor decided to get a pump here and open the pool."
The options seemed a bit grim 10 days ago, as the parts to fix a failed pump and a new pump would completed until almost August 1.
"The city council was persistent in getting a pump here in a timely matter," Soderberg said. "After we discovered the pump was broke, we were on a mission to get the new pump and get the pool open."
According to Soderberg, a pump was found in Kansas, but wasn't under any kind of warranty.
From there, the committee, the council and ultimately the city, decided to get a pump out of Florida, with a warrantee and ready to provide fun for the kids and adults in Wakefield.
Mayor Paul Eaton contacted local trucking businesses and asked if any could grab the new pump and get it here sooner.
The new pump arrived in two days and set the stage for this summer's swimming at Wakefield.
With the pool open, things are back to some-what normal for the people and kids of Wakefield.
Which allows Soderberg to thank a few people that made it all possible.
"We want to thank our pool manager, Tiffany Patrick and our pool staff for waiting out the outcome," Sodergerg said. "It's hard to stick around when a job is not there - but now that the pool is open, we'll figure it out.