Dakin Pool opens with a great splash 53 flock to cool waters within first hour

BANGOR – Cannonballs were flying Monday at Dakin Pool, and Rachel Winslow did one of the best.

Wearing a flashy, multicolored two-piece bathing suit, the 8-year-old took a running start, jumped with arms flung in the air and landed with a solid splash, soaking her mom and brother, who were dangling their feet at the edge of the pool.

“Cannonballs are my favorite,” said an out-of-breath Rachel after her explosive performance. She is from Goodlettsville, Tenn., and visiting Bangor for the summer.

To the delight of the Friends of Dakin Pool, lots of children were splashing alongside Rachel on Monday, a particularly pleasing sight because the pool faced closure by the City Council earlier this year because of low attendance and funding problems.

If the weather remains nice, attendance may prove a positive factor in the pool’s future. Within the first hour of its opening, the pool had attracted 53 users, summer attendant Tabitha Bracey said.

The city has two pools, the new Beth Pancoe Municipal Aquatic Center off Union Street, and the smaller Dakin Pool, located on Pine Street off Stillwater Avenue.

“Saturday at the opening of Pancoe, we had 23 kids there all day, so this definitely beats that record, but it was really rainy and messy out” said Bracey, who works at both pools.

The friends group, also called Dakineers, raised $2,300 to pay a pool attendant’s salary, which means patrons will not be charged admission.

A large portion of the $2,300 was raised earlier this month at a spaghetti supper attended by Gov. John Baldacci, a Bangor native who used to swim at Dakin Pool. The fund-raising effort will continue for the Dakineers because if this summer’s attendance confirms the pool’s popularity, another $90,000 will have to be raised to renovate the bath house.

“There is a huge amount of public support for the continuation of the pool,” Bill Sullivan, one of three incorporators of the Friends of Dakin Pool committee, said at Monday’s opening. “Whether it gets translated into higher use of the pool is the question.”

In attempts to boost attendance and kick off the swim season, the committee gave out free ice pops and balloons to pool-goers, which proved a hit with the younger children.

Jennifer Larlee and her two children, Shelby, 3, and Jack, 1, enjoyed the sunshine, ice pops and cool pool water Monday afternoon. Larlee said she had lived in the area since 2003, but didn’t know there was a pool in the area.

“[Dakin Pool] is right near us, we like the location and size. We should thank all the people who put the effort into saving the pool,” Larlee said.

Elizabeth Robito, 12, and her classmate at the William S. Cohen School in Bangor, Rebecca Barnett, 12, said they bike to the Dakin Pool to swim and tan almost every day.

“I like this pool because you don’t have to pay to get into it and I can get to it by biking,” Barnett said.

The Dakineers will meet at 6 p.m. Wednesday, June 22, at the Bangor Public Library to choose committee members.

“[The friends organization is] building, and we’re excited that we have a lot of people working on committees and we’re gaining a substantial amount of support,” Sullivan said.

Purple-and-red ice-pop stained children seemed to agree unanimously that Dakin Pool is a must for the city of Bangor.

“I hope it’s open again next year because I really like it,” Rebecca said.