After many months of construction and installation, Bolles’ new Tarver Pool is open for swimmers.

First to make a splash in the new pool were members and friends of the Tarver family, whose generous gift made the pool construction possible. The family convened for a celebratory jump recently – launching a new chapter of excellence for Bolles Aquatics.

The family of Jack Tarver includes his daughter Margaret Tarver Jason and granddaughter Missy and Josh Pearson and their five children Emmy ’19, Kallie ’21, Jessie ’23, Jack ’26 and Charley ’29. Jackson Williams Tarver was chairman of the board of Cox Enterprises, the publisher of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, chairman of the board of Atlanta’s Federal Reserve Bank, and chairman of the Associated Press at the time of his passing in 1999. He left his widow Margaret Taylor Tarver and two children, four grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. Several years ago, the family funded the construction of Tarver Hall on the Bolles Middle School Bartram Campus in his honor. This innovative project was the first major academic facility to be built on campus in more than a decade.

The pool gift also marks a first-in-a-decade moment – this time for Bolles athletics. The Tarvers' philanthropy advances the future of Bolles Swimming, an area of athletics that has been personally meaningful to the family over the years. Members of the Tarver and Pearson families have been avid participants in and supporters of competitive swimming and are committed to taking the Bolles Swimming and Diving program to new levels.  Missy’s sister, Katie Jason Oldoerp, swam for Bolles from 1989-1994 and went on to swim collegiately at Dartmouth College.

The Pearson and Tarver families and their friends were the first to enjoy Tarver Pool, but they are not the last. Bolles Head Coach and Aquatics Director Peter Verhoef held the swim team’s first practice in the new Myrtha pool on April 14 – taking his own moment to dive into the new waters and next chapters of Bolles swimming.

“Our goal is to offer a program to develop people of excellence and elite performances and Tarver Pool takes us to the next level,” Verhoef said.

Verhoef and Bolles swim coaches jumped into the pool for a lap with the Bolles swim team. The mood was celebratory as all expressed gratitude and excitement for the future of Bolles swimming. For photos from the ‘first splash,’ visit our online gallery.

Bolles swimmers and coaches have long awaited the occasion. Construction on the 25-meter by 25-yard pool began more than a year ago following the delivery of an elite Myrtha pool from the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. The pool was installed there temporarily for a two-day International Swimming League Championship in late-December before it was disassembled and moved to Jacksonville. Myrtha pools boast a  patented lamination process of a hard-bond PVC to stainless steel, which promotes lower operational costs through life maintenance and makes it a championship standard in the swimming world. The pool, which was built at the site of the former Lobrano Pool adjacent to Davis Gym, promises to build on Bolles’ six-decade legacy of swimming dominance. It has an 8-foot minimum depth and full springboard diving facilities, which means Bolles coaches now have the resources to prepare student-athletes for the latest evolutions in NCAA-level competitions.

Tarver Pool begins the transformation of Bolles’ aquatic facilities and set a new benchmark for developing student-athletic excellence. This project completes Phase I of the redevelopment of Bolles’ pool facilities. Work now enters Phase II of the planned expansion for aquatic excellence—which includes expansion of the dry-land training room, welcome center, coaches offices and new meeting/venue space overlooking both Uible Pool and the track and stadium area.