Help Keep Us Afloat during the 13th Annual Tin Cup Challenge!
Teton Valley Aquatics’ mission is to partner with the City of Driggs and the Community of Teton Valley to optimize resources for designing, building, and operating a successful aquatics facility. Why does Teton Valley need an aquatics facility and why does Teton Valley Aquatics exist? Because our community lacks access to year-round public water. Access to water that can provide opportunities to learn and practice water safety and for increased health and wellness benefits.
Currently, residents in our community must drive over Teton Pass to Jackson or similar distances to neighboring Idaho communities to participate in learn-to-swim or other aquatic wellness programs at public pools. An aquatic facility in Teton Valley will enhance the overall health, wellness, safety, recreational opportunities, and quality of life for all Teton Valley residents and visitors. The logistics of swim lessons for families traveling to Jackson for work would be solved with a Teton Valley community pool.
Our aquatic center will address rising health issues such as obesity and diabetes along with physical therapy and rehabilitation. Teton Valley has a high rate of injuries from sports and recreation activities because of our outdoor focused lifestyles. Injured residents must travel distances to utilize the nearest available therapy pools and the commute most always outweighs the therapeutic benefit of the pool. Local access to a rehabilitation pool will allow residents to heal more quickly and completely.
Drowning is the leading cause of death in the United States, ages 1-4 and the second leading cause of death for ages 5-14. In our valley alone, over one third of households surveyed reported having a non swimmer. There are only two locations in Teton Valley that currently offer a small selection of swim lessons, not enough to serve the needs of our community. Swimming lessons being locally available and readily accessible to our community will save lives.
The center will also look to provide competitive and sports training programs that will have positive impacts on our community’s youth and economy. Other programs, such as kayak classes and learn to swim, will allow residents to become confident in their skills so that they can more safely enjoy our local natural resources.
Since 2016 Teton Valley Aquatics has been working through a staged approach to making an aquatic facility reality. At this time we have successfully completed stages 1 & 2, WHY and FEASIBILITY, and are now in stage 3, SITE SELECTION. Following analysis of potential sites for a recreation facility, in May of this year, our project team gave a recommendation to the City of Driggs for a piece of land and the City of Driggs approved moving forward with the purchase of the piece of property at the June city council meeting. Now more than ever our mission is coming to life and we need our community’s support through Tin Cup donations. Keep Us Afloat so we can continue on our journey for year-round water access for our Teton Valley community.
