He grew up in Lenexa spending summer days at Flat Rock Creek Pool, the neighborhood swimming pool two-blocks from his childhood home.

“That really opened my eyes to the lifeguarding job because when I was a kid, I was seeing what they did every day,” said Johnny Linder, Lenexa Parks & Recreation Customer Service Supervisor.

When he turned 16 years old in 2012, Johnny applied to be a summer lifeguard. He has been employed with the city in various positions ever since.

“I was really drawn to being a lifeguard just from my background and being exposed to the pools as a kid,” he said. “That’s when I really started to enjoy it.”

He lifeguarded in the summer for four seasons before he became an outdoor pool manager.

“I didn’t think about it at the time but all the trainings we did really helped us with the actual job,” Johnny said. “And just growing in working relationships and building connections with co-workers.”

When the Lenexa Rec Center opened in 2017, new year-round job opportunities followed.

“That’s when I started working as the indoor pool manager,” he said. “After a year or two, I started helping with being a manager on duty and assisting front line staff, responding to issues and emergencies – really focusing on the staff working that day.”

While Johnny attended Kansas State University earning a degree in marketing, his part-time job with the Rec Center was always available.

“Throughout college, internships and even my full-time job after graduation, Lenexa has always been there for me,” he said. “There was a semester that I didn't have Monday or Friday classes so I would come and work pretty long weekends here. And even with the two-hour drive, I would still come back and work a shift. It was obviously good for income, but it also goes to show how much I was drawn to this position and how much I truly enjoyed it.”

His plan on graduating from college in 2019 and taking on a full-time sales job came to fruition, but his chosen career path was unfulfilling.

“It was a really good company, had really good people there, but I kind of learned throughout the year that the sales role definitely wasn't for me ­­­– it didn’t fit me very well,” Johnny said. “I noticed that my joy and happiness was not at its best. That’s when I decided to start looking at other jobs.”

In 2021, Johnny learned about a full-time job opening at the Rec Center.

“I genuinely wanted to be here,” he said. “When this position opened, and based on the timing of how I was feeling with my role back then, I applied, and I am lucky enough to hold this position to this day. This role definitely fits my personality and my goals a lot more than my previous position did.”

From supervising 35 employees and leading his team in providing exceptional customer service to handling emergency situations and resolving customer challenges, Johnny is constantly supporting the frontline staff at the Rec Center.

"It’s a pretty good mix of patron and employee engagement,” he said. “My position is really supporting the frontline staff, more specifically the Rec Center front desk, and Kid Zone. It’s responding to employee needs and being as helpful as possible by jumping in, whether that's starting a new membership or helping watch kids in KidZone. It's a good balance of front-line support work and other tasks.”

Handling stressful incidents and emergencies at the Rec Center are also part of the job.

“There’s a little bit of an adrenaline rush for sure,” Johnny said. “Part of responding to emergencies is the adrenaline rush you get when responding and knowing what I’m doing is going to help the person. A lot of what was instilled into me during lifeguarding and aquatics years is the ability to respond and the quickness to respond and understanding that not everyone is going to know exactly what to do in every emergency but trying to learn from each situation.”

Most surprising part of his current position?

“The number of babies I hold as a supervisor,” Johnny said. "If we’re understaffed for the day or if a staff member needs to step out, we’ll jump down and help in that area.”

As a supervisor, he strives to be approachable, helpful and supportive to his team.

“I want them to know that you can take more out of the job than just a paycheck,” he said. “You can grow personally and professionally within your roles. That’s based on self-motivation and the willingness to do more.”

Johnny lives in Mission, Kansas with two roommates. He’s the second youngest of five kids. Outside of work, Johnny enjoys staying active by working out at the Rec Center, running outdoors and playing ultimate frisbee. He’s looking to run another marathon this fall, and he hopes to complete the Boston Marathon one day.