Occasionally, after longs days in 39 years of service, the caretaker for Taylor’s main city pool had a thought that she’d say to her children.
“She’d go, ‘Wouldn’t it be great if they named the pool after me?” said Pat Helbert, daughter of Doris Roznovak. “They did!”
On May 28, Roznovak’s family and friends, city leaders and residents ventured to Murphy Park to honor her with the dedication ceremony of the Doris Roznovak Aquatic Center. The pool also opened for the summer season.
“My mom would be so proud and so happy,” said Helbert. “She’d be going ‘Goodie, goodie, goodie, goodie,’ and dancing all over this place.”
“Taylor City Council officially approved renaming the pool in May 2021 after a request was made to the Parks and Recreation Department to change the name. The city received several letters in support of changing the name of the pool in honor of Roznovak.
“It took our breath away when they told us it was going to (happen),” said Helbert.
Roznovak passed away in March last year. Tyler Bybee, Taylor parks and recreation director, hated that he didn’t know Roznovak but heard a lot of about her.
“This seems right,” said Bybee. “The least we can do is to have a proper dedication ceremony for her and the things that she did for the city and the pool.” City staff received
City staff received several letters in support of changing the name of the pool in honor of Doris Roznovak.
“In the summer months, she was the extraordinary manager at the Taylor City Pool where she encouraged and instructed youngsters and helped them overcome their fear of water,” wrote Dixie Rhoades in her letter supporting the renaming. “Many Taylor children grew up spending hours of each summer day at the city pool where they felt safe because Me Maw Doris was in charge. They have fond memories of her smiling face and positive attitude.”
Rozonvak’s family affirmed her mothership over the community.
“Mom was a mom to many. She was strict as hell, and yet she was a lot of fun,” said Helbert. “You brought your kids here, and I promise you, they were going to be taken care of. She treated those kids just like she treated all of ours. She loved every one of them. She loved every bit of this pool.”
Helbert recounted all the extra hours Roznovak put in to care not only for the pool but the residents.
“I can’t tell you how many times that they closed the pool, she’d be a friend to those that needed to talk,” said Helbert. “They told her lifelong secrets that we don’t know about, and we’ll never know about, but Mom was a friend to them.”
That said, her own family also had a home at their mom’s workplace.
“I grew up there at the pool. This was our park,” said Stayci Roznovak-Burris, Doris Roznovak’s daughter. “We’d get here at 8 o’clock in the morning. We wouldn’t go home until 10 (p.m.) because she also ran the golf course. We ate a lot of ice cream. I ate a lot of ice cream. I ate a lot of chili dogs. I loved the snow cones. I could have anything I wanted because I was the pool brat.”
In addition to the city’s pool renaming, that pool brat keeps Roznovak’s legacy alive in her own way.
“My mom was a mentor to a lot of people and so I take on that tradition of teaching kids. I’m a school teacher,” said Roznovak-Burris. “I loved being with her every minute at the pool.”
She’d go, ‘Wouldn’t it be great if they named the pool after me?’” “
— Pat Helbert quoting her mom, Doris Roznovak
DORIS ROZNOVAK AQUATIC CENTER
1600 VETERANS DR., TAYLOR
Pool season at Murphy Park opened Saturday, May 28. The pool traditionally opens on Memorial Day weekend. There is a designated lap lane open during regular business hours. There are single admission fees and pool passes available, which can be purchased at the pool inside the front gates.
HOURS
• Monday: Closed
• Tuesday: 12-8 p.m.
• Wednesday: 12-8 p.m.
• Thursday: 12-8 p.m.
• Friday: 12-8 p.m.
• Saturday: 12-8 p.m.
• Sunday: 1-8 p.m.
FEES
• Ages 3 and under: Free
• Ages 4 to 12: $2
• Age 12+ & adult: $3
• Seniors (ages 60+): $2
• Family Pass for 30 admissions: $45
• Family Pass for 60 admissions: $90
For more information, visit http://taylortx.gov/746/swimming-poolsplash-pads.
