Kemp Mill Swim Club members are finishing up this summer season in their newly renovated and accessible pool with a 4-3 swim team record.

While that tally may not be the greatest, don’t tell that to the team members, of whom more than half are Shomer Shabbat, meaning they do not practice or compete on Saturdays. They also are joined by a few Seventh-day Adventists, who also can’t compete on Saturdays. Of the 90 teams in the Montgomery County Swim League, the Kemp Mill Kangaroos are the only Shabbat-observant team.

Benjamin Horn, who is about to start 10th grade at Paint Branch High School, said he loves the chance to compete. He swims with his classmates during the school year but cannot compete during Saturday meets.

“I like it better,” he said of the Kemp Mill swim team, “because I can compete.”

Last year, Horn was the only Kangaroo between 13 and 14 years old and ended up swimming in many events, even filling in with older swimmers. “I prefer the breaststroke. The butterfly and the breaststroke,” he said.

Alyssa Parness, president of the swim club and swim team director, said it wasn’t that difficult to work out a way for Shabbat observant young people to enjoy being on a swim team. She receives a county league schedule in the fall and then reaches out to the teams in Kemp Mill’s division to see if they would be willing to swim on a weeknight or Sunday.

“The other teams have always been very accommodating,” she said.

If a divisional competition does occur on a Saturday, the Kemp Mill swimmers compete at home on Sunday and record their times themselves.

“The Kemp Mill Swim Team — the only Shomer Shabbat swim team in Montgomery County — has become an example of how summer swimming can be adapted to preserve Jewish observance while strengthening connections across the broader community,” noted Sheila Turner, whose son, Jackson Geraghty, is on the team. He is about to start fifth grade at Milton Gottesman Jewish Day School of the Nation’s Capital. Although the family is not Shomer Shabbat, they enjoy being able to swim at a pool so close to their home.

According to Turner, “collaboration and mutual respect have made a beloved summer tradition accessible to children who might otherwise be unable to participate.”

Last month, when a divisional meet was rained out and therefore postponed until Sunday, members of the team walked around their neighborhood, knocking on the doors of their teammates to let them know that they needed to be at Eldwick swim club in Potomac by 7 a.m. Sunday.

“MCSL is a very inclusive league. We are glad that we can find a way for Shabbat observant members to participate,” said Scott Witkin, a MCSL board member. “By and large, it works. The other teams are cooperative.”

He complimented Kemp Mill members who “strive to allow Shabbat observant members of the community to participate in this fun activity.”

There technically are 80 swimmers on the Kemp Mill team, but about 30 of them are young and mostly there for swim lessons. They are called Joeys, and the youngest one is a mere 2 years old.

The team competes with five other teams in the O Division. They ended the season in fourth place in their division. To Turner, not being in a incredibly competitive division makes the summer more fun. “We are not amazingly competitive, just very friendly,” she said.

Atara Parness, who attends Towson University, joined the swim team when she was 6 years old and continued through her high school years. During that span, she is or has been a swim coach, lifeguard, pool operator and swim instructor. She swims on her college’s club team.

“Our snack bar only offers kosher options,” Alyssa Parness said. During swim meets, they serve kosher pizzas. During socials, members are encouraged to share their food, but are requested to write labels noting if the dish is kosher or not or whether it was made in a kosher kitchen.

According to Turner, “Many host teams voluntarily provide kosher options at away meets. These simple but meaningful accommodations have fostered greater understanding of Kashrut and respect for the needs of Orthodox families throughout the league.”

Alyssa Parness said the team is well known in the Kemp Mill community, which is home to many Orthodox Jews, but not as well known throughout the county. Club members are trying to get word out that everyone is welcome to swim with the Kangaroos as long as they become members of the swim club.

On Sept. 7, the club is holding a duck derby. Hundreds of small plastic ducks will float down the sliding board and into the pool. Those purchasing a duck have the chance of winning prizes. Everyone is invited to this event, whether members or not.

Suzanne Pollak is a freelance writer.