Murray Stephens likes to joke that it took his own blood to help build the Meadowbrook Aquatic Center.
What you don't realize, until you hear the stories, is that it's actually true.
"When you're putting down concrete for a pool and you cut your hand, you look down and see your blood going into it," Stephens said yesterday, reminiscing about one of the many upgrades he made to the facility. "It means a lot more to you when that happens."
With yesterday's announcement that Olympian Michael Phelps and coach Bob Bowman have formed a company, Aquatic Ventures LLC, and purchased the business side of Meadowbrook and North Baltimore Aquatic Club, it marks the beginning of a transitional period in Stephens' life and for the landmark facility.
For more than 20 years, Stephens has been the man behind Meadowbrook's steady growth, its role in the community and its reputation as a training ground for Olympic-caliber swimmers. He realizes, though, that the time is right for someone else to continue the steady march forward.
He's not disappearing. His deal with Phelps and Bowman includes a long-term lease for the Meadowbrook property, which means Stephens will continue to own the land and the two pools. But the gruff, straight-talking 59-year-old said he feels the time is right for the torch to be passed to Bowman.
For the first time in many years, Stephens - who guided the swimming careers of Olympians Theresa Andrews, Anita Nall, Beth Botsford and Whitney Metzler - can focus on his love of coaching again. He also hopes he can spend more time with his four teenagers: Reilly, 19; Kerry, 17; Jesse, 15; and Henry, 13.
Stephens, in addition to running Meadowbrook, taught English literature at Calvert Hall and Loyola for 30 years, and for much of his career, he put in 70 hours a week between school and the pool.
"I'll be happy if Michael and Bob decide to make this a permanent situation," Stephens said. "And I'll make some adjustments for the facility if they decide to do something else. This gives me a respite to have a little more time with my family."
Stephens, who grew up in Baltimore and has lived in Cockeysville for 47 years, has an intensity to almost everything he does, but he did share a few wistful smiles yesterday while talking about his lengthy time at Meadowbrook, which he purchased with his wife in 1987.
