top
Peninsula
Peninsula
Indybay
Indybay
Indybay
Regions
Indybay Regions North Coast Central Valley North Bay East Bay South Bay San Francisco Peninsula Santa Cruz IMC - Independent Media Center for the Monterey Bay Area North Coast Central Valley North Bay East Bay South Bay San Francisco Peninsula Santa Cruz IMC - Independent Media Center for the Monterey Bay Area California United States International Americas Haiti Iraq Palestine Afghanistan
Topics
Newswire
Features
From the Open-Publishing Calendar
From the Open-Publishing Newswire
Indybay Feature

STOMP to Make Sutter Health Reopen Therapy Pool--Rally

by Save the Mickelson Pool Advocate
S.T.O.M.P. stands for Save The/Our Mickelson Pool. About 100 activists, many former pool users, gathered in front of the entrance to the Mickelson Therapy Pool in San Mateo on July 24. They demanded that Sutter Health reopen the facility that it shut down in March 2020.
sm_pool24kokneedrampjuly22_52-51.jpg
Photos by Dan Ryan, ProBonoPhoto.org
Please credit the photographer

The $4 million Mickelson Center was originally financed entirely by community donations—including $1.5 million from the late philanthropist Mack E. Mickelson. Pool supporters also say that they know, because they are cemented into the south wall of the therapy pool facility, that over 200 private donations were given in exchange for names imprinted into the pool wall's tiles.

With a doctor's prescription community members were welcomed for a monthly fee to use the warm water therapy pool in Mickelson Center...for decades. That all ended with the beginning of the Covid pandemic. Sutter Health, with designs to razing the rehabilitation pool and building a greater revenue generating facility in its place, used the pandemic as a reason to close the pool.

Research shows that warm water therapy is vital to improvement in recovery from surgery, and treatment of arthritis and multiple other medical conditions. The Mickelson Therapy Pool was ADA compliant, one of few in the Bay Area, and the ONLY such center on the San Francisco Peninsula. It also served children with special needs.

On July 24, San Mateo County Supervisor David Canepa hosted a rally attended by about 100 people, emceed by the Raging Grannies, and featuring speakers including former pool users and other supporters. The San Mateo County Central Labor Council, Sequoia Healthcare District Board of Directors and the Peninsula Health Care District Board of Directors are amongst the many organizations advocating for a reopening of the pool. Many speakers, including Dr. Susan Stevens, gave testimony as to how crucial the therapy pool is.

Incredibly, Sutter has refused to consider an offer by the Peninsula Health Care District to pay all costs to repair, reopen, and manage the pool at least until a suitable replacement facility becomes available. Advocates say that if Sutter continues to refuse offers of support to reopen the pool, they should be required to reimburse the public donations that funded it in today’s dollars so that a new facility could be developed.

City of Millbrae Vice-mayor Gina Papan said, "It's time to get the California Attorney General involved," to cheers from the crowd.
§County Supervisor David Canepa hosted the rally...
by Save the Mickelson Pool Advocate
sm_pool24djgranniesjuly22_20-19.jpg
...and held up water exercise equipment
§Save Our Pool
by Save the Mickelson Pool Advocate
sm_pool24boroheadjuly22_33-32.jpg
§Lining the front of the center
by Save the Mickelson Pool Advocate
sm_pool24frontdoorjuly22_14-13.jpg
Before the rally, as people gathered, Sutter Security insisted that demonstrators stay OFF the property. Warm Water Wellness, Inc CEO Lindsay Raike cited Pruneyard Shopping Center v. Robins, a U.S. Supreme Court decision issued in 1980 which affirmed the decision of the California Supreme Court in a case that arose out of a free speech dispute between the Pruneyard Shopping Center in Campbell, California, and several local high school students.
§"Get the California Attorney General Involved!"
by Save the Mickelson Pool Advocate
sm_pool24ginapappanbwjuly22_40-39.jpg
Gina Papan, Millbrae Vice-mayor, called for state of California AG Rob Bonta to step in and make Sutter do the right thing
§Save Our Pool!
by Save the Mickelson Pool Advocate
sm_pool24saveourpool_july22_10-9.jpg
§Return our money
by Save the Mickelson Pool Advocate
sm_pool24return_money_july22_7-6.jpg
Public donations mean that the pool was meant for community use, argue the advocates for pool reopening
§All along the ECR
by Save the Mickelson Pool Advocate
sm_pool24_sidewalk_july22_8-7.jpg
ECR is short for the El Camino Real. The pool is located at 75 S. El Camino Real, San Mateo
§Dr. Susan Stevens
by Save the Mickelson Pool Advocate
sm_pool24drsusanstevensjuly22_29-28.jpg
Retired Sutter doctor and former pool user herself, Dr. Stevens spoke to the urgency of reopening the therapy pool and highlighted its value for children with special needs.
§Former Pool Users Spoke
by Save the Mickelson Pool Advocate
sm_pool24user_july22_26-25.jpg
§Interview with the press
by Save the Mickelson Pool Advocate
sm_pool24interview_july22_9-8.jpg
§Rolling Up Their Sleeves
by Save the Mickelson Pool Advocate
sm_pool24sosjuly22_25-24.jpg
Ready to continue the two-year long battle to save the pool
§Mickelson Must Reopen
by Save the Mickelson Pool Advocate
sm_pool24toyojinjuly22_31-30.jpg
§Leading Advocates
by Save the Mickelson Pool Advocate
sm_pool24franklindsayjuly22_39-38.jpg
§Mickelson Center Sign
by Save the Mickelson Pool Advocate
sm_pool24centerjuly22_45-44.jpg
Gathering
§Just some of the many who demonstrated
by Save the Mickelson Pool Advocate
sm_pool24group_july22_56-55.jpg
Posed for a photo
Add Your Comments
We are 100% volunteer and depend on your participation to sustain our efforts!

Donate

$80.00 donated
in the past month

Get Involved

If you'd like to help with maintaining or developing the website, contact us.

Publish

Publish your stories and upcoming events on Indybay.

IMC Network