Dear Oak Park swimmers and parents,

Last night was… something, wasn’t it!? We were all challenged by the circumstances, and many of them were not what we’re used to or ideal. We were wet, frustrated, confused… blah! But, despite all of that, we are writing to say how very, very proud we are of all of you.

Swimmers, we know it’s hard to jump in the cold water in the rain. You all did that, and swam hard in your races. And, taking one of our main OPK values to heart, we noticed great sportsmanship from you. Supporting your teammates, shaking hands with the other team, and staying in the water until all swimmers finished - we saw it all and we are proud. We know it’s hard to keep a great attitude when expectations are unclear and conditions aren’t ideal (believe me, we get it!!), but we were so impressed by your flexibility and willingness to go with the flow.

And for the parents and caregivers - thank you! You rolled with it, stepped into unplanned volunteer roles, and stayed positive for your swimmers. We’re so grateful you all were willing to stand in the rain and support our team, and share your awesome kids with us.

We still aren’t sure who won the meet, since there were some irregularities that we’re investigating. (Also, now’s a good time to thank our TSA representatives, Kathy Livengood and Andy Gospodarek.) We spend a lot of time teaching the rules of swimming and we think it’s important to us that all teams follow the same rules.

We’re proud to be Oak Park Piranhas, and we’re grateful for you. No practice tonight, we hope you stay dry and warm. See you Thursday!

PS. We will double the cheers next week

Coach Beth

Coach Cindy

Coach Kaylin

Coach Jamie