The Inside Press

Magazines serving the communities of Northern Westchester

Willowbrook Swim and Tennis

Willowbrook Swim & Tennis Club: A Fun-Filled, Memory-Making Place for Families

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Mount Kisco, NY — Looking for plenty of summertime fun for the whole family? You’ve come to the right place when you enter Willowbrook Swim & Tennis Club. With its deep connection to the community at large, the club offers a wide range of compelling summer recreation programming to its members.

Willowbrook opened in 1965 as a solution for a community lacking a public pool. At the time, a vote was conducted to build a public pool in town but the decision was not approved. As a result, multiple swim and tennis clubs were constructed and put into operation around the Chappaqua area — including Willowbrook Swim & Tennis.     

Since 1965, Willowbrook has offered a family-friendly place where kids of all ages can disconnect from their devices, kick back, play, swim and engage outdoors.

Volunteers Mary Dempsey (left) and Verena Dunniganat at a June Ice Cream Social at Willowbrook Swim and Tennis     Inside Press Photo

And the adults love it too. Harriet Engel, President of the Board of Directors at Willowbrook, described the varied offerings, from monthly ice cream socials, regular wine and beer tastings to board games and bingo days. There’s even a book club!

At a post 4th of July event on July 6, members can enjoy a bounce house, a waterslide with treats like popcorn, snow cones, and cotton candy.

Along with its pool, Har-tru tennis courts, and the addition of two new pickleball courts, Willowbrook members also have access to Somers National Golf Club due to a reciprocity agreement between the two clubs.

Perhaps the most exciting feature of Willowbrook is its very successful swim team: every child has an opportunity to participate.  Engel mentioned, “Our swim team is the ‘winningest’ swim team in Northern Westchester.  A lot of the competitive swimmers around town got their start here; this was their very first swim team.”

Engel’s own three children started swimming at Willowbrook. “This was their very first swim team and now they all swim in college; that’s the case for many competitive swimmers in the area.”

In fact, the Horace Greeley High School Swim team was featured in this very press last year to acknowledge their achievement of being the first Horace Greeley team to win state championships three years in a row. Engel said, “Several of those boys got their start swimming here and still swim on the team here.”

The swimming success stories might well be attributed to the great staff and swim coaching Willowbrook offers.

One coach who has become positively legendary is Kelly Blacker. Blacker is the head coach at Willowbrook and a year-round USA Swimming Team swim coach with Storm Aquatics. Engel added, “Of the Chappaqua pool clubs, we’re the only one that has a USA Swimming swim coach who expertly teaches the strokes to the kids.”

Kelly Blacker, head coach at Willowbrook Swim and Tennis, and year-round USA Swimming Team Coach with Storm Aquatics   Inside Press Photo

Several kids, as young as five years old, got their start in the kiddie pool. They joined the swim team, and grew to be competitive college swimmers like Eric Engel, Oliver Engel, and Connor McHugh. Willowbrook members can take advantage of certified swim instruction lessons, tennis camps and clinics with coaches and staff  who are experienced and care deeply about the people and community.

Ultimately, Willowbrook is about family bonding and memory making. Engel said,” My family has been a member here for 20 years; my kids have grown up here, I think it’s a great family environment.”

Visit willowbrookswimtennis.com for more info.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ready to Open Pool Clubs Eager for a Green Light

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Willowbrook, like other county and private pool clubs throughout the county, anticipates opening during Phase 4.

The soundtrack of a pool club consists of the following: wet flip flops, lifeguard whistles, kids asking for snack-bar money, parents saying no, but then giving in after the fifth ask and loud splashes following a cannonball.

Unfortunately, the sounds have been put on pause. Although summer has arrived and Coronavirus cases have declined, pool clubs in New York are still not open for the season.

We’re all looking for answers, but unfortunately so are those who are in charge of the clubs themselves. Harriet Engel has been a board member at Willowbrook Swim and Tennis Club for four years and is a long time member herself of 16 years. She recently spoke to Westchester County Executive George Latimer on the phone, who is also awaiting answers from the state, to discuss the status of the pool clubs.

“George Latimer said on this call that he strongly feels that the pools can be open safely and they have done that in other states…it’s just a matter of when and what specific restrictions are imposed when they can open.”

The reopening of pool clubs is part of the Phase 4 structure in relation to COVID-19, however it is unclear if that means county pools or private ones. But, county pools are preparing to open, which means so is Willowbrook.

“We are prepared to open…when we are given the green light. We’re ready to go,” Engel said, stating that they’ve had plumbers there and pools being filled and repainted.

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The question of snack bars, playgrounds and swim teams are all currently unanswered and not up to individual pool clubs but rather the state. However, tennis clubs have been open. At Willowbrook, although both pickleball and tennis courts are open for play, you can’t share balls and large clinics are not being held. With that being said, the Pros at the club are available for lessons if you are looking for something to get your kids out of the house.

That’s another thing. Kids have been cooped up for months inside their homes due to quarantine, so the opening of pools would be a great way to let them be outside and get out of the house. And with the cancellation of many sleepaway camps, families are now home with their kids with nothing to do. For those who are worried about social distancing and the travel of germs, no need to fear.

“The benefit of the pool clubs is that they are all open air…they say that being out in an open air environment is much safer because everything can circulate, so it seems like it’s a safe environment and plus we have a lot of deck space. So, we could allow the chairs to be more distanced from one another for people to social distance themselves on the deck,” Engel reassured.

And in terms of the swim team, although there is no concrete plan or set of guidelines to follow that have been provided just yet, there are some possible solutions.  For instance, separating kids into different age groups and capping the number of swimmers allowed in the pool at one time. Even though these potential implementations change one’s normal routine at the pool, it seems as if that might be the only way to get back in the water.

“It’s the price of being able to partake in an activity, safely, to keep yourself and others safe. That’s the name of the game. You want to be able to do all these things, but we’ve taken all these precautions so to do something in an unsafe manner just doesn’t make sense right now,” said Engel. “You would sort of destroy all the work that you’ve put in up until now.”