They include sports complex employees Ricardo Macias, Avellaka Arviso, Lawrence “Marshal” Oguinn and Julissa Ledesma. Silvas obtained tribal council approval and additional funding for six more positions, and four people were certified in May and June. “I was asked to run it due to my history of swift water rescue, 21 years of paramedic experience and willingness to accept the challenge.”Īfter the summer, it was determined that due to the work and personal schedules of fire department employees, more people needed to be certified, not just for daily open swim times but for after-hours private parties as well.

“I was asked to coordinate training, certification and pool coverage scheduling,” Cisneros said. Lifeguard Avellaka Arviso watches a young swimmer at the Soboba sports complex pool, July 13. A request by Andy Silvas, director of Soboba Parks and Recreation, put together a program that would benefit the center. Robert Cisneros, firefighter and emergency medical technician for the Soboba Fire Department, and firefighter-paramedic Mike Chidester were trained as lifeguards and instructors in June 2019 and rotated shifts at the sports complex pool. After each session, everyone is asked to leave the pool area, and a 30-minute cleaning routine is performed. Lifeguards take the temperature of each person upon arrival, and all visitors are required to wear masks when outside of the pool. The pool is open only on weekdays for three sessions each day with a limit of 30 people each session. The Soboba Band of Luiseño Indians’ tribal administration decided to have a safe reopening of its sports complex pool, July 6, and recently certified lifeguards were ready to go on duty.

Soboba beekeeper