Texas Pool Memories: Scott Walker

For the historic Texas Pool’s 60th summer, we are collecting photos and memories from people who have enjoyed swimming across Texas throughout the years. Below are memories from former Plano resident Scott Walker. If you have a fond Texas Pool memory or vintage photos that you’d like to share, please send them to communications@texaspool.org.

Wow; it is hard to believe the Texas Pool is celebrating 60 years. I have SO many great memories growing up and then working there.

My family moved from Orange Co, CA into a house on Northcrest during the summer of love (’69). I was an excited six year-old, and my parents more in culture shock. Plano was still Far North Dallas.

By 4tn grade my buddies and I would make that long barefoot walk on the hot sidewalks from the 1900 block, down through the creek before the bridge went in, and spend all day at the pool. Occasionally we might ride our bikes, but we were in no hurry to get home. If we were lucky our parents would bring us back after dinner for an evening swim. Coming later and staying after 9pm, until they closed at 10, was even better. I also remember long line the first Saturday the pool opened every years to buy our family swim tags. The other memory that comes back is how crowded the pool would be, especially on Sunday, when it looked like a huge bathtub and nobody could actually swim. It was packed.

I started working as a guard in ’79 and making a huge $2.90 an hour, and loving it. Old Mr. Wayne Sledge had been running the pool for many years, and our first job ever April was to drain and clean the pool, before repainting the bottom. My first two years I enjoyed the early morning cleaning shift from 7-10am cleaning the pool, restroom, etc. Had the music blaring for all the neighbors across the creek. Think disco and Urban Cowboy. I also made tons of friend working there, but the Gajdica boys (Ronnie, Chris, and John) along with John Laramore, and we made a tight bunch dudes doing everything together. I was the king (debatable?) of the high board for many years, keeping the tradition of entertaining the kids with my acrobats during adult swims, and finishing by doing a watermelon to splash my fellow lifeguards on the stand when it was located were the slide is now. Back in the day we also “benched” kids that continued to misbehave. Usually they (me included) wanted to be bench for the attention.

Oh those teenage memories, and having Charlette Ball notice us.

I hate to admit it but I continued to work there until 1986, mostly in evenings and weekend, as I helped manage during my lunch breaks for Mr. Hickman. I loved the Texas Pool and so glad you save it. I saw the “other” club pool in town at Harrington park closed many years ago and has since been demolished. I had siblings that guarded at other pools, and my three daughters all became lifeguards, but none of those pools could match the magic of the Texas Pool. The Walker family all started moving away in the late 80s and early 90s, but the Texas Pool will always be one of my favorite life long memory.

Thanks you again for saving it, and I wish it last another 60 years for more families to enjoy.

~ Scott Walker