Last lap

In the 1960s and '70s, the Theodore family swimming pool in Ooltewah was a social hub for neighborhood youth.

"Every Sunday night we would bring at least 20 kids home with us from church," said Midge Theodore, who has three sons with her husband, George, a retired TVA worker. "About half the kids in Ooltewah learned to swim right here."

As the years passed, the pool became less populated, and by last year it had all but passed its expiration date.

"When you get to be 80 years old, you don't want a pool anymore," Mrs. Theodore said.

Rather than let the pool became a backyard eyesore, Mr. and Mrs. Theodore converted it into a garden.

After the bottom was jackhammered and drained and the space filled with topsoil, they called in landscape architect Tom Carroll to design a quaint, outdoor oasis.

"(Mrs. Theodore) said she wanted something like an English country garden," said Mr. Carroll, owner of Carroll Landscaping. "She told me she wanted Knock Out roses, a water feature, herbs, and she gave me pretty much free rein to do whatever else I wanted to do."

Mr. Carroll researched English gardens, then designed a blueprint of the garden, incorporating curved bedlines to offset the squareness of the pool space.

"The shape is probably more formal than an (actual) English country garden," he said.

The Theodores have a view of their new garden from their screened-in porch, which features a table and sofas. They don't miss the pool, but Mrs. Theodore worries that "the kids," now in their 40s and 50s, will be disappointed to see it gone.

"The older kids in the neighborhood," she said, "will be shocked to know they can't swim anymore."