Women-Only Swims Offer Religious, Personal Freedom
Columbia Association program allows girls and women to swim in an environment that's more comfortable for some while allowing others to adhere to religious codes.
Life-long Columbia resident Katlin Lamke learned to swim as a young child through the Columbia Association and enjoyed the activity until her early teen years. As she matured physically, she found that she got unwanted attention at the pool. As a result, she stopped swimming. Shehlla Khan, a Muslim, could not swim in co-ed settings because of religious dress codes. When her husband became ill, it was hard for the mother of three to take her children swimming when she had to remain fully clothed. In talking to other members of the Dar al-Taqwa Mosque, Khan realized many other men and women wanted separate swimming times. Lamke, Khan and several other women — and a few men — gathered Tuesday to celebrate the creation of a women-only swim …
Amy Lamke
11:35 pm on Tuesday, November 22, 2011
I am so incredibly proud of my daughter Katlin, who tonight addressed Columbia Association's Board of Directors, thanking them for the thoughtful decision they made in choosing to approve the women-only swim times at the Wilde Lake Swim Center. 56 PATH people came out tonight in a show of support (It was a tight squeeze to all fit in that room). It was a little curious though, there was NOT ONE … more ›