Links, laps and Joe Lassus

Among stories and commentary published on Brentwood over the weekend was Williamson A.M.’s “Your Voices” column which asked readers to weigh in on Brentwood’s choice to promote itself on the web versus making a sizable donation to the Williamson County Convention and Visitors Bureau.
I’ll be honest, I have mixed feelings about the issue. Too often I believe our city does operate in a vacuum when it comes to working with our county and the other municipalities near us on issues that affect us all. On the flip side, say Williamson County Tturism and what springs to mind. Might it be … Franklin?
I’d be interested in your thoughts. And in the meantime, here’s a link to the W-AM piece in case you missed it: www.tinyurl.com/BWtripweb.

Congrats Stingrays, swimmers
My new swim team correspondent Deb Phillips emailed this over the weekend from the Williamson County Championships held at the Indoor Recreation Center on Heritage Way:
“The results are in! In the Single A division, the Brentwood Country Club Stingray’s avenged their second place trophy in the regular season by winning the first place trophy in the County Championship over the weekend. Coach Will (Drumright) motivated his team by shaving his hair into a Mohawk which he dyed green and then drew a Stingray on the bald area!”
I know Will. Why does this not surprise me? And to all of the local kids who participated in the meet, congratulations! Complete records and results from the meet can be found at www.tinyurl.com/BWswims.

Can you spy Coach Will in the picture? Look closely at the heads and he's pretty easy to find!

Repeat of a football classic Wednesday
Speaking of sports, can’t wait until high school football season starts again? Well, the county’s WC-TV-Comcast Channel 3 offers both a peek into the past and one into the future this week.
This week’s WC-TV classic football game of the week features the Ravenwood vs. Brentwood Academy showdown that took place Aug. 26, 2005. The game will be aired at 9 a.m., 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Wednesday.
Also on Wednesday, WC-TV’s Williamson County Schools Sports Connection show features guests Page High Football Coach Jack Daniels and Ravenwood High Football Coach Tom Shuman. It airs at 1:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Update on Joe Lassus
Mike Walker shared last week that Planning Director Joe Lassus has completed his radiation treatments for the brain tumor discovered several months ago. “He will continue on chemo for the next month. It is my understanding that they cannot do an MRI to determine the status of the removed tumor until early August so that will be the next big medical date. He visited City Hall a few weeks ago and looked good physically.
“However, prayers for a full recovery are still needed.”
Let’s all stop and say one for Joe and others in need of healing. Unfortunately there are too many of them to list individually here.

Swimmers compete for championships; swim for Special Olympics

This morning I asked for good news, and here's some to share:

This in from Deb Phillips of Brentwood...
"The Williamson County swim league season is coming to a close with the finale being the County Championships at the Williamson County Indoor Sports Complex this Friday and Saturday. With over 900 kids ages 5 through 18 competing, it’s the place to be this weekend. You can go to the Excel website www.excelaquatics.org/age_group and learn all about it. ...
It is hosted by Excel Aquatics with the help of many parent volunteers from about 15 different teams to make sure the meet is run smoothly.
The kids have been getting up early this summer to get into top shape just for this event. (And yes, my own Sierra Phillips is swimming in the 11-12 age group for Brentwood Country Club. She is coached by Will Drumright, a BHS grad, who now manages the University of Alabama swim team!) Last year Will shaved his head in a Mohawk when his 7- and 8-year-old relay won their event!

And this came in recently from Angie Miller, about Wildwood Swim & Racquet Club:
"Wildwood Swim and Tennis Club is hands down one of the most fun places to spend the summer with your family. Tucked away in a corner of Brentwood bordered by the Little Harpeth River in the Wildwood subdivision sits a very friendly and activity filled family mecca.
Established in the late 1960s, Wildwood Swim and Tennis Club, one of the only swim and tennis clubs in Brentwood, set the standard for family friendly fun. Not only does Wildwood have 10 hard tennis courts (four of which are covered in the winter by a bubble), it also offers a beautiful pool with two diving boards, two kids slides and a baby pool all surrounded by the privacy of ancient shade trees.
Moms and Dads park themselves at the pool in the morning and pretty much spend the whole day chatting with fellow parents while kids rotate from courts to pool to grill to pool.
Recently Wildwood hosted a Swim-a-thon to raise money for the Special Olympics. Our championship swim team swam multiple laps for money and raised over $1,400 for the Special Olympics. ...
I personally have been a member for about eight years and have loved raising my kids at Wildwood. I can always count on simply "showing up" and finding a friend to talk with while sipping a tall lemonade and munching on a grilled cheese with fries. I love the staff and all the volunteers that continue to make it a wonderful place for me and my family!"
For more information on Wildwood, visit www.wildwoodswim-tennis.org/.