Grand Forks’ aquatic centre has been around since 1987 and the Piranhas Swim Club has been tied to the facility for almost as long.

The club was started by Cora Ludwar, nee Everett, in approximately 1988 and has been a fixture at the swimming pool ever since.

The Piranhas swim competitively — in fact, they held their annual swim meet on June 5 — and while they do swim and train year-round, the spring and summer months are when the 60-plus members see the most action.

“We do winter maintenance just to keep the kids in the water to keep them connected but we really take off the first week of May,” explained Karen Heric, the club’s president.

“That is full-on, four to six times a week they’re in the water, once a week they’re Dry land training, so those 60-70 kids are together and every weekend we’re off to a swim meet.”

Heric says that the club competes against other clubs from Castlegar, Trail and even Colville, Washington and tries to keep the coaches local; Christina Lake’s Cole Merry is an example of this.

Merry has unique perspective, as he is not only a coach, he rose up through the ranks, starting out as a swimmer. Now 19-years of age, Merry joined the Piranhas when he was 11 and says that there are many benefits to the Piranhas Swim Club.

“I think the (club) is great, I love it,” said Merry.

“When I was a kid, it was a hobby to do in the summer instead of just hanging around and being bored or getting into trouble.”

“It was a chance to get to meet new people, because I live near (Christina) Lake. I made a lot of friends and met a lot of people.”

Merry also says that he has become a better swimmer throughout the nine years that he has been with the club.

“I always liked to swim but I definitely wasn’t a competition-level swimmer,” Merry explained.

“After three or four years in the club, I was going to competitions and winning medals — my skills have vastly improved.”

Amongst the medals Merry has won, gold in breaststroke.

The Piranhas are competitive, taking part in a number of meets throughout their competitive season but the club’s goal isn’t to win at all costs.

“Fitness, fun and family is our motto,” says Heric.

“We really try to encourage that. We encourage everybody to get along.”

The family aspect extends beyond the pool as Heric says that swimmers aren’t the only people that make up the Piranhas Swim Club.

“We’re able to run because of all the parent volunteers, that is a big thing keeps our team going,” she said.