Businesses and organizations in Washington have organized a slew of fundraisers next week in an effort to save the pool at Hildred T. Moore Aquatics & Fitness Center.

Kicking off the fundraisers is a Save the Pool golf tournament on June 21 at Washington Yacht & Country Club. The tournament costs $75 per person or $300 per team. Registration opens at 11 a.m., lunch is at noon and tee-off is scheduled for 1 p.m. The event will also include a 50/50 raffle and prizes awarded to winners of each flight, according to the event flyer.

Next up is a car wash hosted by Beaufort/Hyde Special Olympics on June 23, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Verizon Wireless parking lot on West 15th Street in Washington.

The World’s Largest Swim Lesson, a fundraiser set for June 24, will be held at the Aquatics & Fitness Center, and invites the public to come out for swimming lessons. This event costs $5.

Pizza Inn is pitching in, as well, with a June 27 fundraiser from 5-8 p.m., in which 10 percent of the night’s earnings, as well as tips made by volunteer wait staff made up of parks and recreation staff, members of the pool study committee and students and parents associated with the various swim teams that use the pool, will go toward the pool effort, according to Dalace Inman, aquatics supervisor.

The study committee is also selling “Save the Pool” T-shirts and decorative tiles that can be personalized and will be used to make a mural by the kiddie pool at the facility, according to Inman.

These fundraisers are in response to Washington City Council’s discussion in the past year on whether to close the pool, as it does not create revenue for the city or make enough money to sustain its operations.

The pool, used by many community members and several area swim teams, including East Carolina Aquatics Swim Team, Washington High School Swim Team and the Washington Whitecaps, also needs a new dehumidifier, which could cost $300,000, according to Inman.

A pool study committee was appointed in October 2015 to help find viable ways to not only raise half the cost of the humidifier, which would be matched by the City Council, but also to find ways to increase revenue through programs and membership, as well as cut expenses, Inman said.

The deadline to raise half the cost of the dehumidifier is Dec. 31.

Inman said the pool is a valuable resource in the community, and members and the community-at-large are working to keep it from closing.

“We’ve been doing well,” Inman said. “We’ve increased revenue this year. Things are improving.”

Inman said the pool serves many needs in the community, including teaching water safety, teaching children how to swim and housing competitive swimming teams, among others.

“Our indoor pool is the only public pool available in the city that the community can access,” said Kristi Roberson, director of the Parks and Recreation Department. “Although we do have memberships, we also have public hours that the public can come in and utilize the facility. Not only do we provide the health and wellness aspect and competitive piece, but it’s also a family atmosphere. We teach kids and adults how to swim. We provide a recreational facility where the whole community can come in and learn to swim and play, and it’s an important resource. All the things we’re doing would be in order to allow the community to support a facility that’s doing good things for our area and our community.”

For more information about the fundraising efforts, contact Kristi Roberson at 252-975-9636 or Dalace Inman at 252-948-9420.