Earlier this month, I traveled to West Point, New York to watch my son play college baseball against Army. While watching him play can be stressful, when I am at the game it is hard not to reflect on all of the moments that led up to taking the field. The long road trips, silent car rides home and the excitement of success. There are so many others who have helped make a dream of college athletics possible and for their contributions, I am thankful. For those of you who have children who are currently playing, or once played sports, you understand it is a commitment from all involved. Parents, coaches, league volunteers and the participants themselves must all sacrifice something and put in work to make the games happen.
When we watch our professional athletes compete on the national or international stage, it can be easy to forget that at one point, they were little boys and little girls who forgot their water bottles at home on the first day of practice. Shuttling forgotten sports items to schools or fields is a rite of passage for the parents of sports playing children. It is the early reminder that true team effort, and not only on the field, is required. Considering too the World Cup or Super Bowl Champions, the players and coaches always receive the well-deserved accolades even though the support staff required, from logistics, to equipment, and athletic trainers, work tirelessly to get the team ready to play.
The shared purpose of many is what makes success and achievement possible and a consistent effort over time is required to reach the pinnacle of any pursuit. Winning as a team is not a selfish act, rather it is a selflessness and appreciation for the skills of others that creates the opportunity for success. Working together with common purpose we can achieve more than is possible absent collaboration and cooperation.
We have come so far together these last few years and we should all be proud of what has been accomplished as a team. April ended with 28,341 memberships, and we continue to make progress toward our goal of 30,000, which I am hopeful we can reach by the end of the year. I have the opportunity to speak with other club owners and operators around the world, and you all should know that compared to many others in our industry we are truly outperforming in our recovery.
While it is great to have a goal in mind, the achievement of the objective is made up of a million little steps that keep our members and guests returning to the club every day. Medallia, the survey instrument we use at acac (and in use at thousands of other clubs around the country), measured the three most important factors in determining member satisfaction: 1. Cleanliness 2. Friendliness 3. Facility/Equipment Quality. Every single person in the company can help with numbers 1 and 2. If you see something that needs to be cleaned, step in and help out! Say hello or ask if someone needs any assistance. Your individual actions to support the mission of the organization are crucial to the continued success of the business. I hope that you will consistently support our members, guests, and each other, especially through the summer when many of our clubs are at their busiest.
In this month’s recap of what has been happening at acac, I would like to specifically mention the tragic story of the two young boys who died in an auto accident around the corner from our Midlothian club. Nick Booth and Will Hammitt had been part of the acac family for many years, as campers and as team members. Thank you to all of those who helped recognize these young men by planning the community memorial service at the club. It was a true team effort from our amazing Midlothian.
We are continuing to improve our facilities with several projects on the horizon. Replacement of floors in the West Chester mind body studios, new cycle bikes and weight equipment for South Carolina, and the long-awaited Short Pump fitness floor renovations have commenced. As we move into the fall, you will see more equipment at all of our facilities and a few more renovations and improvements as well. It is exciting to get moving a little faster on upgrading our clubs as membership has recovered.
In honor of Memorial Day, I would like to take a moment to recognize all of our current team members and their families who have served our country as a member of our armed forces. Thank you for your collective sacrifices on behalf of the United States.
Looking forward to a great summer everyone and thank you for everything you are doing each day to serve our acac and Sportsclub communities,
Chris
. . .
Good News April/May 2023
Adventure Central
The Adventure Central team united for Dress Alike Day, creating unforgettable memories and picture-perfect moments!
Albemarle Square
Service Day
April was National Stress Relief Month and we strive to make acac a stress-free environment for our members. Our own Nurse Patti provided stress relief foam pills for our members to have and use when they are away from the club.
Hosting Boys and Girls Club
While we try to serve all members of our community, it can be easy to forget that many do not have access to our wonderful facilities on a regular basis, whether that be for financial, transportation or other considerations. This month we wanted to provide some fun for the kids that do not have the opportunity to join the club or go on vacation during their spring break. Kids attending the Boys and Girls Club of Charlottesville were invited to use our aquatics center on a Sunday night. There were many smiling faces and laughter and what a terrific job done by our aquatics team to provide such a safe environment.
Where’s the GM?
GM Mike Battle was able to visit the birthday gathering for our own little Spencer, Kids Zone Legend. She had a wonderful birthday event with many gifts. Several members stopped by with their kids and one member even produced the birthday cake.
Several team members were present at a recent Albemarle/ Western Albemarle Girls Lacrosse game. Thank you for coming out to support, with team member Kelsey Kirkeide contributing 5 goals for Albemarle in a close loss!
Coffee Anyone?
Hope you noticed the new coffee bar set up between the front desk and cafe? Lauren (Cafe Manager) has almost doubled her coffee sales since changing the location.
Purple Support
As we supported acac Midlothian after the tragic loss of two young team members, our gang dressed in purple for the day. Purple is the school color of the boys’ high school. Marketing Director Cassy Roop, Downtown GM Jill Acchione and Mike Battle drove down to support the event at the club with 1,000 people in attendance.
Legend
The one and only Linda Grooms visited her old friends at the club. If you don’t know, Linda was an acac employee for over 22 years and such an unbelievable service provider our annual Service Award is named in her honor. What a delightful person. She was offered her a job on the spot, but she is enjoying her retirement!
Downtown
Turtleneck Day…I love this one, especially because the guys clearly were on the same page with their pensive looks.
DT team getting in the spirit of the Masters Tournament…that is a sharp looking foursome!
Life Saver
Downtown MOD & Member Services Team Member DJ Worrell was the first on the scene for a recent Code Blue. DJ was honored by the Charlottesville Fire Department as a First Responder. WOW!
Toilet humor at its best, Downtown:
The DT club received a large accidental shipment of Angel Soft toilet paper, so Jill & Cassy turned it into team member magic, delivering a roll of Angel Soft to every team member to say “Thank you for all the crap you do!” Note Jill’s angel wings & Cassy’s “I pooped today” t-shirt and poop pajama pants (where are these sold?!)
Cookie bake-off was looking pretty delicious, I am a sucker for the ones with the Hershey kiss in the middle.
Midlothian
Say it ain’t so Walter?! If you haven’t heard the bittersweet news, Walter will be retiring at the end of April to spend more time with family and friends. And he’s going to be a grandfather too! We will certainly miss (but never forget) his smile, jokes and that laugh heard throughout the entire fitness floor. But don’t worry, he’s sure to show up (and yes he’s invited too!) when we have any event with food. Be sure to thank Walter for all that he has contributed to the acac family. He’s definitely a Hall of Famer! Thank you Walter for all the great laughs and memories.
Midlothian and Short Pump celebrated acac family with a team cookout on April 28. The weather was rainy and cool but that didn’t stop several team members from coming out to enjoy burgers, dogs and wishing farewell to retiring team member Walter Mitchell.
Sad News
Some of you may have heard about the tragic death of 2 high school seniors in Midlothian this month. These young men, who were the best of friends, grew up in our acac summer camp program and ultimately became team members, in that very program. Their parents are acac members, as well. Our hearts go out to these families.
acac Midlothian was honored to hold the memorial service for the boys. The boys attended James River High School, right around the corner from the ML club.
Team acac, wearing purple, for the boys’ high school, showing support for one another through, yet another, uniquely challenging time. Thank you all for coming together in mind, body and spirit!
acac Midlothian and Short Pump were honored as award recipients from the Ronald McDonald House in April for their work raising funds through the 30 for $30 campaign
Short Pump
Member Magic: Here’s one of our more engaging non-fitness events being set up by our own Alexis M. and led by Zack L. It takes a small army to turn this studio into a banquet hall, in just a matter of minutes. Great job, team!
SP team member Cam, at the Final Four; Cam says “I’m in heaven right now!”
Cam at Short Pump has claimed his favorite sandwich from the new café menu, if you are in Short Pump, be sure to check it out.
Member Magic at Short Pump, celebrating National Pretzel Day
Birthday surprise on the Short Pump pool deck!
SP team enjoying time ‘away from the office,’ it is awesome to have team members getting together outside of the clubs.
Team helping team in need! Aquatics Lindsey pushes trainer, Caroline, who was healing after a bout with a 10k
West Chester
The WC team celebrated National World Party Day on April 3rd with Member Magic: spinning the fitness wheel, a selfie station, pin the tail on the donkey and of course disco ball with some tunes!
Parker and Alex got in the spirit!
We are very excited to announce that we have hired a GM in West Chester, PA. Paul Torrao will be joining our West Chester team on May 22nd.
Paul has been leading teams in the sports and fitness industry for over 10 years. He is originally from Orlando, FL, but has spent the last 7 years working for Equinox clubs in Southern California. He is passionate about helping people maximize their potential within themselves. Paul is known for building strong community culture both inside and outside the club while delivering organizational results.
When not working, he enjoys hanging out with his two German Shepherds, Apollo and Arlo. He also enjoys playing golf, camping, off-roading in his Jeep, snowboarding and ultimately just being outdoors. He’s a huge sports fan and loves watching all sports (I’m sure he’s going to adopt the Phillies, Sixers, Eagles and Flyers!).
Something you might not guess about Paul is that he’s a big sneaker head and has been told he has way too many pairs of shoes.
And last but certainly not least, our featured pet is acac Preschool Director Lauren Tucker’s pup Rory…who looks like a very good boy!
