Great Neck Recreation Center — Local services in Virginia Beach

Blonde lady at the front desk needs retraining..here is what happened, my son's membership expired so I came in with him to renew it, everything was going great until AFTER my son paid with HIS bank card, NEVER once through the whole process did she ask to see any of our id's. So after my son paid and the receipt printed out she said "who is ?"we responded with "that is his dad" she then said that my son is not allowed to use that card, I said what do you mean he cant use his card and she said well you said it was his dad, I then replied with well yes his dad is that name as well as my son has the same name...she then says well the application says this name( my son goes by his middle name and after his last name it says II, standing for the 2nd) I said yes it does but if you would also look at the application after his last name it says the second, she said "well he still cant use that card in the future, hes already paid for so it doesn't matter" I replied with "yes it does matter because this is his card what if he needs to purchase something you wont allow him to use HIS own card" I then informed her that if she would have looked at his card it says the second II just like his application said...she said " you are good to go"...no thank you, kiss my butt NOTHING!!! I would have asked for a manager but I had a newborn baby with me and wanted to get her away from all the people...I work in customer service and was VERY disappointed in how my son and I were treated, clearly she needs to be trained that some boys are named after their fathers and therefore go by there middle names...perhaps check id's and applications before taking the money off the card...my son loves this rec center and we drive 20 minutes each way to go this one, but if customer service is this rude I will seriously think twice before dropping him off here anymore, because if he had a question or needed help with anything looks like he will get treated rudely because he goes by...

So my local Rec Center decided to do a "throwback" theme for the month of July to celebrate "parks and rec" month. On their advertisement board, they were trying to celebrate Virginia Beach's Past......Only one problem...they are celebrating segregation. All the pictures they used are from 1910-1940's and show segregation, celebrating a time when Virginia Beach had two beaches...one for whites and the other for blacks. 7 of the 8 photos are of whites only on a "whites only" beach, and the 8th photo shows only blacks on a "blacks only beach". Segregation is not something we should be celebrating, throwback or not.Also considering that most of the pictures are of white people, its a insult on two different levels. I called Great Neck and the lady at the desk did not know what to do so she transferred me to the pool office, where some guy named Billy, totally gaffed me off, and didn't even take my complaint seriously. (He has some racial tendencies no doubt). This is a prime example of how ignorance can perpetuate racism and hostile environments. Considering that the Area of Great Neck is historically racist, it would make sense that some of the local racist made it into our city government. Well Done Great Neck. Well Done! I am sure the Building Director Pam would be proud. Who ever made this advertising board has some subconscious racial issues he/she needs to...

The staff are always pleasant, the facility is consistently clean, and the equipment is up-to-date! My only complaint is that they are by far the strictest in the city when it comes to putting belongings in a locker. I went into the basketball court and planned on shedding my jacket, then sweatpants in the five minutes it would take me to warm up, then put both items in a locker. No sooner had I placed my jacket by the wall alongside a gallery of cell phones, water bottles, and head phones than a staff member told me to put it in a locker. Today, I went to change out of my work out clothes while my friend finished his work out. After I changed, I walked into the gym to give him his shirt and jacket (since our locker was now left unlocked--I wasn't about to spend another quarter to re-lock it for two more minutes) and wait for him to finish his last set before we left. I put my bag on the ground in the corner, very much out of the way, and stood by it to wait. Sure enough, a staff member told me to put my things in a locker. My friend decided to just skip out on his last set and we just left. It's one thing if someone leaves a bag laying there for 20 minutes, but quite another if you're only going to be a couple minutes AND you're standing by...