For those of you who are fortunate enough to participate in our Safety Around Water (SAW) Program --thank you for letting us be a part of your routine at the YMCA.
Throughout April, we hosted the Dixon School of Arts & Sciences, a private school where 95% of their students qualify for scholarships to attend their school. The school reached out to us to help them introduce swimming to their scholars. This past month we welcomed the 2nd and 3rd graders to help them with this.
We have loved watching them progress from nervous and scared to happy and excited to be swimming on their own. In the SAW program, we teach the children safety in and around the water. We have taught them how to swim-float-swim and how to jump-push-turn-grab so they can get back to the wall if they fall in the water. We also taught them how to put on and swim in a lifejacket, how to save a friend who's in trouble in the water, and not to go in the water without proper adult supervision. These skills and knowledge will make them safer in and around the water. This is important to all of us!
Did you know? The CDC states that drowning is the second leading cause of unintentional death for the nation.
We hope to continue to continue this partnership with the school as well as the Boys and Girls Club, who we will be working with over the summer at Hunter Pool.