KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A Platte City swim team is being dissolved by the Greater Kansas City YMCA, marking the end of a club that's been around since 1971.
Parents say the announcement is confusing and heartbreaking for swimmers, and now the families of 70 athletes are having to make difficult choices.
While the pool can still be used, the YMCA said the decision to cut the team was due to low participation and financial difficulties.
Parents say the Y's decision to drop 70 swimmers came as a surprise.
"We all felt really blindsided," said Lynette Busick, a Blue Wave Swim Club parent. "You kind of walk in it and say, 'These pieces don't go together, and we're not getting proper explanations, and we’ve devoted a lot of money to this,' to have the disrespect of not even telling us why. Their whole mission is doing what’s best for kids, community and they didn’t really take the community into account at all, and that’s really disappointing."
David Field says he and his son chose this club as he prepares to compete in college.
"We’re in the middle of our competitive season; we have champs and districts coming up right after the first of the year — our swimmers can't swim with another club; they have to have a 60-day waiting period," said David Field, a Blue Wave Swim Club parent. "My son's a high schooler, and he's a competitive swimmer who probably will swim in college — this is the program we chose."
Parents and swimmers say they are now facing possible restrictions.
"The other teams have waitlists, so to have this taken away from them is difficult, so what do we do now?" Busick said.
Field also said his family is left with uncertainty.
"You gotta keep swimming five, six days a week. How far are we going to drive? What's the expense? There's a waiting period; there is so much unknown," Field said.
The YMCA says they're helping swimmers find new teams, but parents say that's the problem.
Parents are concerned about their children facing heartbreak from possibly being excluded.
"Every meet she improves her personal time — we've never even looked at district qualifying teams, and those are the times she needs to go to another club in the town," said Kristi Dale, a Blue Wave Swim Club parent. "For a kid who finally found her groove, absolutely, this is what's her jam; this is what's excited her. She's proud of herself; she's a sixth grader, and finding something you’re proud of doing matters."
Busick said the changes will impact friendships.
"It’s just been devastating for her emotionally; she just loves these friends and made really great friendships she’s really excited about, and she just feels like that’s gone,” Busick said.
The YMCA says they’re working on refunding swim team membership fees and donations.
Below is a statement released by YMCA ahead of the meeting:
The meeting tonight is exclusively for affected families and is not open to the public or the media. During the meeting, YMCA leadership will continue to address concerns and provide updates. We have already held individual meetings with many families to talk about their concerns to accommodate affected families who wish to meet privately.
Our swim coaches are actively helping families connect with other swim teams in the area. Additionally, we are also exploring the possibility of identifying another swim team to use the pool at Platte County Community Center North and add former Blue Wave participants to their team, allowing Blue Wave families the convenience of keeping their practices in the same location.
The decision to discontinue the Blue Wave Swim Team was a very difficult decision made after careful consideration of several factors. Participation has significantly declined over the past few years, resulting in the program operating at a substantial deficit. As a nonprofit, the Y must make best use of limited resources, and the program is no longer financially sustainable. For swimmers who want to stay, the Y is continuing the team through the end-of-season championship in March.
Swimmers who are leaving the team may request refunds for swim team fees, membership fees and donations. We are processing refund requests as we receive them, and it may take three to four business days for refunds to be processed.
We understand and deeply regret the inconvenience this decision may cause. We remain committed to supporting affected families and thank everyone who has been part of the Blue Wave program over the years.
YMCA sent an updated statement detailing next steps after the meeting Tuesday night:
At a meeting with Blue Wave swim team parents on Tuesday, December 10, Michelle Ford, Executive Director of the Platte County YMCAs, and Angie Lassley, Chief Operating Officer of the YMCA of Greater Kansas City, spoke with parents, answered their questions and discussed their concerns. The group agreed to explore two options for the future.
One option is for the parents to create a separate, independent organization to continue to operate the swim team on their own. The Y agreed that in this scenario, they would donate remaining fundraising dollars to the newly created organization. As next steps to explore this option, the Y will review options to provide the team with rental assistance to access the pool and take an inventory of equipment that could be donated to the new organization.
A second option is for the swim team to combine with another swim team, which would hold practices at Platte County Community Center North to allow convenience for families. The Y’s swim coaches and staff are gathering information from swim teams that have already contacted the Y about combining and will provide the information to parents as soon as it’s available.
“The Y appreciates the productive conversation we had with families, and we are hopeful about the options discussed,” said Angie Lassley, Chief Operating Officer for the YMCA of Greater Kansas City. “We are actively gathering information needed to explore the option of supporting an independent team operated by the parents or combining with another swim team. We know this is a difficult time for swimmers and their families, and are working to do what we can to make this transition easier.”
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KSHB 41 reporter Megan Abundis covers Kansas City, Missouri, including neighborhoods in the southern part of the city. Share your story idea with Megan.