From Dream to Reality

By Nia Rincon

The ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Mike Rose Aquatics Center at the University of Memphis in April 2023 served as celebration of many things, including the city, the UofM, the Memphis swimming community and water safety. In particular, it served as an opportunity to pay homage to two people who were largely responsible for the $12 million renovation becoming a reality — the late Mike Rose and Dick Fadgen.

Fadgen laid the foundation for Memphis swimming. He was a six-time All-American swimmer in college who broke the world record in the 220-yard breaststroke in 1954. After he missed qualifying for the USA’s 1956 Olympic team by only one-tenth of a second, Fadgen became an alternate for the Summer Games in Melbourne. He went on to become an accomplished triathlete who never strayed too far from the water. One of his biggest career accomplishments was the legacy he built as founder and coach of the Memphis Swim Club, later named Memphis Tiger Swimming.

Fadgen, who passed away in 2022 at 86, began teaching at the University of Memphis in 1963 and launched the swimming club in 1971. His history of excellence built the reputation of the Memphis swimming program into one of the most respected in the country. To date, Memphis Tiger Swimming has produced five Olympians and 24 Olympic Trials participants with many more athletes recruited to collegiate swim teams.

Having coached and mentored thousands of swimmers throughout a career that spanned more than 30 years, Fadgen instilled the values of dedication, integrity and inclusivity to a generation of Memphis youth, including two children of entrepreneur and philanthropist Mike Rose.

As with Fadgen, swimming was an instrumental part of life in the Rose household. Mike’s daughter, Gabrielle, was particularly drawn to the sport and developed into a two-time Olympian, participating in the 1996 and 2000 Games. Mike witnessed first-hand the positive impact swimming had on his daughter, so when the opportunity to renovate the outdated natatorium on the UofM’s campus came his way, he didn’t hesitate to lead the charge.

Now newly renovated, the state-of-the-art Mike Rose Aquatics Center is a testament to the individuals who were dedicated to enhancing the Memphis community through swimming. It features a new lap pool dedicated to Fadgen, who was instrumental in the development of the pool and envisioned many of the recent updates. Renovations included increasing the pool length, improved mechanical and water handling systems, handicap access and expanded seating. The increased seating and upgrades make the facility appropriate for regional swimming competitions and the only one of its kind in the Memphis area.

Mike Rose and Fadgen had a passion for both the wellness benefits and the community impact of swimming. With these ideals in mind, the aquatics center is dedicated to promoting water safety among diverse populations by offering free low-cost swim lessons to the community.

The project was so important to Mike that he remained dedicated to the fundraising efforts despite battling pancreatic cancer. He sent a voice message to FedEx founder Fred Smith and AutoZone founder Pitt Hyde, two of Rose’s closest business associates, explaining his vision for the facility.

“Fred and Pitt, I wanted to wish you well and tell you about one last project that I have gotten myself involved in,” he said. “It involves the swimming community and the University of Memphis, two things I’ve always had a lot of interest in.”

Mike emphasized the facility could be used by students, competitive swimmers from across the Mid- South and local organizations dedicated to teaching all Memphians about water safety to reduce accidental drowning.

Mike passed away in 2017 at 75 before the project was completed. In the wake of his passing, Gabrielle took the reins in seeing the project through by reaching out to her father’s associates, foundations and individuals. A unique partnership between the UofM, Memphis Tiger Swimming, Splash Mid-South, YMCA of Memphis and the Mid-South, the State of Tennessee, Shelby County Government, FedEx, the Belz Foundation and the Rose Foundation, as well as other private and individual philanthropic support, helped make the center a reality.

“My dad was so involved with this project because it involved two things he believed in — the University of Memphis and swimming,” Gabrielle said. “My dad started the Rose Foundation in 1990 to give back to Memphis. He felt strongly about this … his last project. And he worked on it until the very last weeks of his battle with cancer.”

During the grand opening ceremony, Gabrielle was sure to credit the two people who had done so much to bring the new facility to life.

“Today, we honor the city, the University, aquatics and teamwork. Today is also about two men — my dad, Mike Rose, and an important father figure in so many lives, Dick Fadgen. Both of them shared a love of sports and of family, and I know that their spirits are very much with us today.”

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