Savannah Bourree watches over swimmers at Peachland's Swim Bay.

(KATHY MICHAELS / iNFOnews.ca)

PEACHLAND - When Amanda Lamberton takes her young daughter to the beach she won’t wander too far away.

Like any mom, she doesn’t want to lose sight — doesn’t want to tempt fate.

That is, unless she’s in Peachland, at the last beach in the Okanagan that offers lifeguard services, which is where she was on Wednesday.

On that occasion, she felt comfortable enough to go for a walk across the street and pop into the art gallery while her daughter and friend swam.

“I would never otherwise do this in Kelowna, where we live,” she said, noting she appreciated the lifeguard on duty. “Peachland is a summer destination for us. It’s also not too busy and it’s clean.”

Daniel O’Brien, Josie Montgomery, Zach DaSilva and Megan Cameron were four of five lifeguards on duty Aug. 21.

(KATHY MICHAELS / iNFOnews.ca)

The appeal of Peachland’s unique offering is something all 10 of the lifeguards who work in swim bay through the summer hear about regularly.

Head guard for Peachland, Megan Cameron, has been doing the job for six years and said people continually comment on the appeal of the work they do and wonder aloud why there aren’t lifeguards at more Okanagan beaches.

“My little sister comes here and my parents feel comfortable dropping her off knowing she’s consistently being watched and I know a couple of other parents who feel the same way,” she said, noting she’s a West Kelowna resident. “If something goes wrong, they know there’s someone there who can help.”

Or course, that’s relatively rare.

This year Cameron said there were five water rescues, all of which were for exhausted swimmers who just needed a little help making their way back to shore.

Daniel O’Brien, who is one of three siblings to have lifeguarded at Peachland's Swim Bay, made one of those rescues.

And after he fished a tired young girl out of the water, the appreciation of families on the beaches was palpable.

“As I was walking by, people were saying ‘good job lifeguard,’ and there were high-fives,’” he said, laughing.

While he made light of the moment, being in that role of helping young people  learn how to swim or simply navigate a day at the lake is what several guards said had the most value for them.

Lifeguard Josie Montgomery said she gets a real sense of pride from her work, particularly when the kids she teaches lake swim lessons show progress.

This seat will be empty as of Aug. 25.

(KATHY MICHAELS / iNFOnews.ca)

Others on shift Wednesday pointed out that it’s nice to be able to help kids even when they’re not in lessons.

“A lot of people don’t even know that we have lifejackets, so if we see someone who’s not a strong swimmer, we’ll go out and hand them one,” lifeguard Zach Da Silva said.

For him, though, the real benefit of the lifeguard service is simply the sense of community he sees being built.

“We’re a focal point,” Da Silva said.

“People come by and ask ‘where’s the best dinner spot?’ ‘Where can I get a good cup of coffee?’”

Cameron concurs and said the District of Peachland has really found a special formula for building a community around their beaches.

“Peachland prides themselves on having lifeguards,” she said. “They know it looks good and that the community members feel good about putting their tax dollars toward this.”

The season for lifeguard duty ends Aug. 25, which means there is just two more days until the white chair on the beach is empty for another year. 

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