Events on Saturday will mark 25 years for swimming facility

The celebration scheduled for Saturday evening at Central Municipal Pool was sparked by an act of serendipity by Glenn Reeves.

"I was cleaning out some files and I ran across an old brochure from the Night of Gold, and I said, 'My God, this place is 25 years old,'" said Reeves, who is one of the organizers of Saturday's celebration for the anniversary of the pool's opening.

Actually, it will be 25 years, one month and six days old when cake and punch are served to mark the occasion.

An entire day of events has been planned, including free public swimming from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., with games, food and fun offered by the Cape Girardeau Parks and Recreation Department.

An invitation-only program in the evening will bring together those who spearheaded the project, which was a joint venture of the Cape Girardeau School District and the city of Cape Girardeau. That program at 7 p.m. will feature current Mayor Jay Knudtson, current Gators coach Steve Franklin and members of the 1980 Cape Swim Team. Paul Stehr, who was mayor at the time of the pool's opening, will be included on the program, and the master of ceremonies will be David Hahs, who was the emcee for the original Night of Gold. Reeves is hopeful that Art Turner, who was the superintendent for the school district in 1980, will be able to return.

Reeves said the arrangement between the city and the school district "was probably unheard of for those days."

The goal was to build a facility large enough for the public, a place to teach swimming and a pool that could host competitive swimming and diving. Central Municipal Pool was the only Olympic-sized pool in the state for many years, and according to city officials, it was the largest enclosed swimming pool in Missouri in the 1980s.

"I don't know that the impact of the pool is really recognized," Reeves said. "We used to fill the hotels with people from out of town, and it still does."

Central High School swimming coach Dayna Powell said she worked at the pool as a lifeguard when it opened.

"Having that pool was huge," said Powell, who noted that the Central swimming program is celebrating its 15th anniversary this year.

"It allowed the swim club to grow the indoor program and become a better year-round team," Powell added. "They took advantage of that facility to produce some nationally recognized swimmers."

The opening of the pool itself was a memorable occasion with five Olympic medalists coming to town to take part in the Night of Gold. Donna deVarona, Bill Forrester, Rowdy Gaines, Wendy Boglioli and John Naber all made appearances at the opening and spent some time in the pool.

"It's a beautiful facility," Gaines said of the complex in 1980. "I wish I had one when I was in high school. You can't say enough about it."

On Saturday, signs on empty chairs will honor the five Olympians who attended the opening ceremony.

Reeves expects some swimmers to return -- those who were members in 1980 of the Cape Swim Team, which sponsored the original Night of Gold.

"We've located members of the 1980 team," Reeves said. "They're doctors, dentists, CPAs, pharmacists, schoolteachers, engineers, every occupation you can think of. We'll have a lot of current and former Gators who are still in the area there."

Reeves, who is coordinating Saturday's evening celebration with Parks and Recreation Department officials Dan Muser, Chad Sierman and Penny Williams, said he was "just a parent" back in 1980. His wife, Rhoda, was awards chairman for the swim club, and he had two children on the team.

"I was just a parent clicking the timer in the hot sun," Reeves said. "I pushed the buttons on that timer all over the state."