A County Durham swimming club is celebrating its 50th anniversary this weekend, by hosting a big birthday event.
Peterlee Swimming Club, established in 1975, has invited all club members, family, friends, former coaches, and former swimmers to a special event on Sunday (September 21).
Tracey Atkin, a former swimmer at the club, who was one of the organisers of the event, said: "It's a massive milestone to get to 50 years for essentially what is a local grassroots club. We've come up against some hardships in the last five years, and the club struggled.
"We're currently building the club back up. Since we got back to the leisure centre last year, the club has been going from strength to strength. I was a member for ten years. It's come full circle for me, which is why I've got involved in this celebration."
"We need to celebrate such a big milestone, and we've put together what we hope is going to be a really nice event for everybody, celebrating being proud to be part of a club that's been going for that long."
The club is expecting about 120 people to attend the event at Peterlee and Horden Rugby Club.
The 40-year-old added: "I hope it's going to be well received with the swimmers. They spend a lot of time in the pool and they don't tend to see anything other than the leisure centre, so it'll be a nice opportunity to spend time together and celebrate.
"There's going to be a lot of friendly faces there that I, and a lot of the other parents, will recognise and it'll be nice. A lot of us have stuck around the club in one way or another, and I have a lot of happy memories there.
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"I'm thrilled that my children are part of the club now too, it's a very nice environment to be in, and the club is very friendly and welcoming."
Leading up to the event, the club has been selling merchandise featuring the logo for the anniversary, including hoodies and shirts for the team.
The event will feature a memorabilia display, a selection of old photographs, activities, games, and some presentations.
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