Chicago Lifeguard Service

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The Chicago Lifeguard Service, or the Chicago Park District Beaches and Pools Unit employs over 1000 Lifeguards during the summer months and 200 during the winter to protect the lifes of Patrons at it's 31 Beaches on Lake Michigan as well as dozens of indoor and outdoor pools at city parks and public highschools. The Service is the largest municipal lifeguard force in the world and is regularly observed by representatives from Japan, Australia, Ireland, Germany, California, Florida and other locales. The Service also covers more waterfront than any other individual lifeguard force in the world; Chicago beaches cover over 26 miles of the lakefront.

[edit] History

The Chicago Park District was created in 1934 by the Illinois Legislature under the Park Consolidation Act. By provisions of that act, the Chicago Park District consolidated and superseded the then-existing 22 sperate park districts in Chicago, the largest three of which were the Lincoln Park, West Park, and South Park Districts, all of which had been established in 1869.

Prior to the 1934 consolidation, there were separate lifeguard forces for most of the individual park districts in Chicago. Even after the consolidation, there were some lakefronts and pools operated independently by the City of Chicago itself which maintained a separate lifeguard service for city lakefronts and pools.

In 1959, the City of Chicago and the Chicago Park District entered into an agreement whereby all of the City-owned lakefronts and pools would be transferred to the Chicago Park District. During the consolidation efforts, several far-sighted lifeguard supervisors, including George V. Iverson and Joseph Mansfield, began to lay the foundation of what would become the Chicago Park District Lifeguard Service, successfully merging the City of Chicago Lifeguard Service with the Chicago Park District Lifeguard Patrol. Further contributions to the Lifeguard Service were made by Sam Leone who founded the first ever Junior Lifeguard program which was adopted by the United States Lifesaving Assosciation.

[edit] Joseph A. Pecoraro

Much of what the Chicago Lifeguard Service knows and does it owes to one man: Joseph A. Pecoraro. In 1949, he took a summer job as a lifeguard at North Avenue Beach on Lake Michigan and never left except for a two-year stint in the U.S. Army Field Artillery (where he taught swimming to the First Cavalry Division in Tokyo). Mr. Pecoraro's time spent at North Avenue are referred to as its "Golden Years".

In 1974, he became manager for all of Chicago’s beaches and pools, overseeing swimming instruction, scuba instruction, lifeguard recruitment and training, and water safety instruction. He was president of the United States Lifesaving Association (USLA) (1983-1991) and continues on its Board of Directors. He travels constantly to public health and safety conferences and among other organizations is a member of Lifesaving Associations of the United States, Ireland, Australia, Germany and F.I.S. (Federational International au Sauvetage). He has authored Chicago’s “Lifeguard Manual” and “Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Manual”, the “New American Red Cross Lifeguard Manual”, and Guidelines for “Establishing Open Water Beach Standards” and “Open Water Lifeguard Training.”

He is viewed by many current guards to be a role model, some would go as far as to say a god. It is still common procedure to here guards say his name in songs and other "only-lifeguards-would-understand" rhetoric. Recently Mr. Pecoraro wrote a book detailing his time in the Service, "Naked Rescue".

Joe Pecoraro was also consulted during the production of the popular television series "Baywatch". He was flown in by the show's executives to verify details about lifeguarding only an expert would know.

[edit] The Service Now

Today's Lifeguard Service is run under the Supervision of Mrs. Janet McDonough, who took over from Mr. Jamie Anderson in 2005.

Chicago Park District lifeguardings undergo hours of specialized training in Water Rescue, CPR, AED administration, Oxygen Administration, Spinal Injuries, and First Aid. The training is a combination of American Red Cross and Chicago Park District standards.

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