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November 12 , 2009
SERBIAN SPORTS PROFESSIONALS VISIT HUNTERSVILLE FAMILY FITNESS & AQUATICS AS PART OF INTERNATIONAL HOUSE CULTURAL EXCHANGE
HUNTERSVILLE, NC – Huntersville Family Fitness & Aquatics hosted a group of ten sports professionals from Serbia yesterday as part of the Community Connections Program, an international outreach initiative facilitated by the International House of Charlotte.
The delegation, consisting of sports professionals, coaches, school teachers, government officials, and NGO representatives from Serbia, toured the facility and met with HFFA Executive Director Molly Burroughs and HFFA Carolina Diving Academy Director Aaron Hintz to discuss youth sports, competitive training for athletes, and the facility’s successful integration in the Huntersville community.
“HFFA is such an impressive facility,” said Rena Hawkins, project manager for the International House of Charlotte and coordinator of the group’s visit to Charlotte. “One of the main goals of the group is to learn how, in the United States, we make sports facilities available to all of our citizens and not just elite athletes. HFFA is the perfect place to demonstrate to the Serbian delegation how a public facility can be welcoming to kids, seniors, and people who swim just for pleasure while at the same time offering coaching and training for Olympic-level athletes.”
During their visit, the group toured the major areas of the facility – including the well-equipped fitness center, the 25-yard and 50-meter pools, the 5-meter, 7.5-meter, and 10-meter dive towers, the outdoor kids’ fun pool, and the after school and preschool programs. The tour also featured some unexpected “hands-on” learning for some of its delegates, including a swim in the 50-meter pool and diving from the facility’s 1-meter and 3-meter springboards. The delegation was also impressed with the fitness center’s newest leading-edge equipment acquisitions, a fluid rower and fluid upper body ergometer manufactured by First Degree, and nearly the entire group gave them a try.
Because HFFA has hosted major national and international events (including the 2004 U.S. Olympic Diving Trials, the 2005 U.S. National & Junior National Diving Championships, and the upcoming 2009 UANA Pan American Junior Synchronized Swimming Championships), the positive impact of the facility’s presence in the community – particularly relating to economic development – was also a topic of high interest to the delegation. The group explored ideas that could help develop similar facilities and opportunities in Serbia.
“We were excited to be part of this special visit to the U.S. and Huntersville Family Fitness & Aquatics,” said Molly Burroughs, Executive Director, Huntersville Family Fitness & Aquatics. “The exchange of ideas was highly worthwhile, and it was an interesting learning experience for all of us. From our standpoint, we hope we were able to share information that will be useful to the delegates in their youth and community sports programs back home.”
About the Community Connections Program:
The Community Connections Program is designed to promote public diplomacy through the exchange of cultural ideas and values among international participants, U.S. families, and local community host organizations. The goal of the Serbian delegation’s visit to Charlotte is to experience how after school activities, parks and recreation programs, boys and girls clubs, and groups such as HFFA, the YMCA, and the YWCA operate and are organized in the U.S.
The group is interested in how these organizations implement fundraising activities, create partnerships with the local business community, and encourage participation from mentors and parents of youth. An underlying goal of the group is to learn how sports impart confidence and encourage friendships, as well as building well-rounded individuals and providing health approaches to life problems.
About International House of Charlotte:
International House is a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing Charlotte and the world together. Its mission is to promote international understanding by serving as a center for diversity, advocating for people of diverse national backgrounds and facilitating professional and cultural programs. The organization offers Language Conversation Hours, where anyone can drop in and practice one of several languages with a group of speakers; international events, like the upcoming International House Pastry Event; an on-staff immigration attorney who works specifically with low-income immigrants; English as Second Language classes; and cultural programs, such as the Community Connections Program.
Huntersville Family Fitness & Aquatics is about family, fitness and fun. This is a place that attracts people because of its exciting variety of programs, state-of-the-art facilities, and community partnerships. This powerful combination allows HFFA to encourage members to experience and achieve the most in health, wellness and total fitness.
Built in 2001, the 88,000-square-foot HFFA facility features state-of-the-art aquatic and fitness components, including a 50-meter pool, a 25-yard warm water pool, an outdoor family fun pool, full-court gymnasium, complete fitness center, and group exercise studio. As the only public facility in the Southeast with an Olympic-sized, 50-meter competition pool and 10-meter dive tower, HFFA regularly hosts aquatics events with up to 2,000 spectators for regional, national, and international swim and dive competitions. For more information, please call (704) 766-2222 or visit www.hffa.com.
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