Swimmerman To The Rescue!

Midtown school teaches children to swim

By Grace Huseth

Hidden on Amsterdam Avenue in Midtown, Swimmerman is like a secret swimming laboratory. It’s surprising to see a business go through the effort of putting a custom-made lesson pool into a strip mall, but Amsterdam Walk’s entertainment complex is the perfect spot for realizing this sparkling idea.

Owner Melina Slotnick and her son Mannfred said they enroll children in lessons August through May to lay the correct foundation, and then apply their swimming skills through play during summer beach and pool days.

While Swimmerman is focused on the science and foundations of swimming, they have also perfected the theatrics of presentation. After all, the entire curriculum is based off a super hero named “Swimmerman” who learns to fly in the water with the help of a little swimming instructor frog named H2O. The lesson pool is decorated like a busy street; “street signs” camouflage required water safety signs, a British telephone booth houses the emergency phone and the focal point is a mural of a large, winding road that depicts the journey of learning to swim.

Melina’s own journey started as a competitive swimmer and then, as an Army wife, she taught swimming all over the world, developing her curriculum in many different pools and using her own children as guinea pigs for developing baby aquatics techniques.

“By the time students leave our program, they may not be the fast kid in the water, but they are the ones a coach can mold. They may not have the endurance yet, but they have the right foundation,” Mannfred said.

For example, many programs teach kicking and arms separately, while Swimmerman teaches body posture with a long leg kick so that children as young as three have proper technique from the beginning.

All training takes place in a small, but efficient lessons pool kept at 94 degrees. The 19’x45’ pool fits in a building less than 3,000 square feet, which is unheard of for an aquatics facility. Swimmerman took 18 months planning the location of the pool, adding deck space, locker rooms and an auditorium in the front for parents to watch the swimming arena.

Educating parents as well as kids is a big part of Swimmerman’s mission. Mannfred says parents always learn from swim lessons, whether it’s learning about water in a new way, seeing their child move in a way they haven’t seen before or teaching a child to overcome fears.

“You never know what the parents are going to get from that first class with their kids. Everyone walks away with something they didn’t have before,” Mannfred said.

In a surprise move, the Georgia Building Authority agreed to sell historic Pullman Yard in Kirkwood to Atomic Entertainment, which plans to create a movie studio open to local filmmakers along with homes, retail and office space. The sale price was $8 million for the 27-acre site. The state had been weighing a half-dozen bids and was expected to open a second round of bidding before it’s unexpected decision on April 19.

Charis Books and More has announced it will depart from Little Five Points after more than 40 years to its new home in Decatur in early 2018. The feminist and LGBTQ bookstore will relocate to 184 South Candler Drive in a partnership with Agnes Scott College. Charis is currently working with an architect, contractor and a team from Agnes Scott to transform the circa-1900 house for a late winter/early spring move.

Bob Jamerson – better known to Intowners as high-stepping performer Baton Bob – has launched his own event planning company, Out of the Box Events, for corporate events and personal celebrations.

is also available to officiate weddings, acts as a master of ceremonies and will perform one of his signature baton routines. For more information, contact Jamerson at BatonBob@ comcast.net or visit batonbob.weebly.com.

Safrai Art Gallery of Jerusalem

May 18 - 21, 2017

Safrai Fine Art Gallery of Jerusalem and Ahavath Achim Synagogue present a 4-Day Event, A Celebration of Israeli Art

Join us in supporting Israeli artists and Israel by visiting this pop-up gallery and purchasing a unique work of art featuring: more than 1500 oil paintings, watercolors, and lithographs by over 100 different Israeli artists.

May 18 | 6:45 - 11:00pm

Opening Night

Join the community for a festive evening of art, music, and light bites and enter to win a piece of art for your home!

May 19 | 10:30 am - 12:00 pm

Women of Valor Coffee and Conversation

May 20 | 9:30 - 11:30 pm

Wine and Cheese Reception

May 21 | 10:30 am - 12:00 pm

A Family Art Project

Gallery open during synagogue business hours from May 19 - 21. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit http://bit.ly/2owk7cG For questions, email delcyharber@comcast.net

Leadership Buckhead has announced the Class of 2017, which includes Robert Almeda, Roshonda Gainey, Adrienne Mogge, Katherine Provost, Nicole Brady, Lindsey Hardegree, Jennifer Moll, Christy Riggins, Jason Byrd, Cara Hergenroether, Renita Moore, E.J. Stern, Bill Dickinson, Reid Hutchinson, Shayla Nealy, Felecia Sveda, Joy Dyess, Angela Johnson, Ryan O’Neill, Ciji Tatum, Jake Evans, Kaitlin Kress, Sara Orrell, Erica Wright, Amy Lantinga and Colin Owens. The Leadership Buckhead Program, founded in 1990, focuses on helping high-potential members of the Atlanta community become stronger, more authentic leaders. For more information about the program, visit leadershipbuckhead.org.

The Junior League of Atlanta (JLA) has closed the Nearly New Shop in Toco Hills after 68 years. The shop, which opened in 1949, has provided a large portion of JLA’s fundraised income by selling gently-used merchandise including clothing, accessories, furniture and other household items. In its almost seven decades, Nearly New has generated millions of dollars that supported JLA’s charitable programs and activities in Atlanta.

It’s all here: a 5BR/4.5BA English Tudor Classic with a modern interior, this is casual elegance at its best. New construction –designed to live well and entertain with a flair. Next to Piedmont Park and the Beltline. Best n’hood schools. Ready to move in this Spring – call for floorplans and make time to see.

680 HILLPINE DRIVE OFFERED AT $1,475,000