Kids learn a life saving lesson at Woonsocket, Pawtucket YMCAs
Local YMCAs offer scholarships for swimming lessons to children in need
PAWTUCKET – Sharleen Owusu decided in January 2017 that she wanted her three children – including Israel (eight), Nathaniel (six) and Isabella (four) – to learn how to swim, so she walked into the Pawtucket Family YMCA hoping to enlist them in lessons.
“It was a perfect time because, in the summer, they love to go to the beach and jump in the water, but there was a problem,” said the city resident. “I wanted to buy a family membership, but I couldn’t afford it.
“I was really disappointed, but then a woman (Membership Director) Liz Goodheart gave me a pass for a month; she said, ‘Try us out, see what you think and get back to me,’” she added. “The kids would come to recreation swim, and they absolutely loved it. There wasn’t a day that went by when they weren’t begging me to go to the pool.”
When the monthly pass expired, the family fun ended, and Owusu admit- ted last fall and early winter weren’t easy; she no longer had a place to bring her kids to “blow off steam.”
The Pawtucket mom went back to the YMCA and spoke with Goodheart again about enrolling her kids in lessons, and that’s when she discovered the organization had a financial aid program to help such people in tough situations.
“When Liz told me that, I couldn’t believe it; she said, ‘You should
see your face!’” Owusu grinned. “I couldn’t wait to tell my children. I told them, ‘We can go to the Y and swim much more!’ They were so happy. It was the highlight of their week.”
According to Operations Director Sean Cassidy, awarding such financial aid packages is common, but he and Woonsocket YMCA Operations Director Kristin Quinn are about to unveil a more comprehensive program.
They will be offering scholarships to children from underserved communities to learn how to swim while also becoming educated about water safety.
Here’s why: They discovered some alarming news, and decided to act upon it.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, fatal drowning is the second-leading cause of death for children ages 1-14. And a study conducted in 2011 by USA Swimming, Inc., the sport’s national governing body, found that in ethnically diverse communities, the drowning rate is two to three times higher than the national average.
In addition, nearly six of 10 African-American and Hispanic/Latino children are unable to swim – and that’s almost twice as many as their Caucasian counterparts.
“Educating children about how to safe around water is just as important as teaching them to look both ways before they cross the street,” stated Jeanine Achin, the Pawtucket Y’s Chief Operation Officer. “The Y teaches children of all ages and backgrounds that water should be fun, not feared, and this practice not only saves lives, but builds confidence.”
Both YMCA staffs are currently taking applications for such scholarships, and each facility will offer 37 beginning June 17. Individual scholarship recipients will receive free lessons twice a week for four weeks.
Applicants must meet the criteria of qualifying for such, however.
If you do qualify, you’ll get a brand new type of swimming lesson format (though it is based on good ol’ fashioned teaching as well).
“The YMCA nationally actually created swim lessons for children and adults back in the late 1800s,” Cassidy noted. “We used to have the different levels of teaching swimming skills, and those were named after fish, starting with Shrimp, Polliwog, Pike, all the way up to Porpoise.
“It was that way for decades, but last year, the Y organization rolled out a brand new program designed around swimming and water safety. Naturally, it’s called ‘Safety Around Water.’”
Pawtucket YMCA Aquatic Director Jonathan Chaisty described it further.
“It started with two stages, A and B, which are for infant through toddler; it’s all about their introduction to water,” he said. “Once they ‘graduate’ from those two phases, they move on to Level 1 at age three; there, they actually start learning about water safety.
“We teach them the ‘Jump, Push, Turn & Grab’ concept, which is what we want them to do when they enter the water, or if they fall into a pool,” he continued. “That means push off the bottom, turn toward the wall and grab it. The whole idea is it’s fun for them to do, but it’s teaching them the muscle memory they’ll need.”
In all, there are the two introductory stages, then Levels 1-6. At Level 3, each child begins learning how to develop their stroke.
“The concept behind the YUSA’s Level 6 is to begin creating skill combinations,” Chaisty offered. “At that point, they should know the four competitive strokes as well as the survival strokes, like sidestroke, elementary backstroke and treading water.
“The actual goal, if a child wants to pursue it, is for them to become a member of a swim team – or begin swim instruction training or lifeguard classes so they can teach.”
——— Cassidy indicated the initiative is being financed by a federally-funded grant to the YUSA (aka YMCAs of the United States of America).
“Appropriate YMCAs (those in urban areas) could apply for money to provide free swimming lessons to children from lower-income families,” he stated. “When we found out about it, we jumped at the chance and applied. This was back in October/November.
“We found out earlier this year that we received the grant, and we were thrilled,” he added. “We thought, ‘Let’s expand on this, as it’s something we’re already passionate about.’”
Mentioned Quinn: “In our case at Woonsocket Y, we were able to serve over 100 school-ages children swim lessons at no cost to the families over the past year. We partnered with Harris Elementary School’s second- and third-grade teachers to build swim lessons into their school day.
“The kids absolutely loved it,” she continued. “We still have that program going, and we also have partnered with the Community Care Alliance and Neighbor Works.”
Cassidy and Quinn both indicated scholarships will be awarded on a first-come, firstserved basis, and that applications will be judged on family income alone.
“Once we use up these scholarships, then we’ll go back to using our own financial aid system,” Cassidy said. “We’ve been very lucky, as we have very generous donors in both Pawtucket and Woonsocket that allow us funds to help additional families.”
Quinn explained she and her staff members are anxious to get the word out.
“On June 3, we will begin collecting applications for our next swim lessons session,” she said. “People who apply need to provide proof of household income, then you’re good. It’s a really easy process.
“This is coming at an appropriate time,” she added. “I found out that, recently, a young child downed in a pool at a home in Woonsocket; it’s such a tragedy. I feel as a YMCA it’s our responsibility to provide Safety Around Water classes to prevent those kinds of accidents from happening.”
Chaisty brought up a similar incident in Pawtucket – though with a much happier ending.
“We call it a ‘Mission Moment.’” he smiled. “We had a five-year-old boy with autism who got out of his house very early one morning, and he decided to go down to the river. Apparently, he was having some fun splashing around in the water, and a kayaker saw him, so called the police.
“When the police got there, the boy actually started swimming further out, and everyone started panicking. The police went out and retrieved him, but then we (here at the YMCA) got some pleasant news. The boy’s parents came in and thanked both myself and (lifeguard/swim instructor) Helder Gomes for teaching him how to swim.
“Those are the kinds of things we’re trying to do with this scholarship program.”
During one such late afternoon session, two more instructors – Shea High senior Quran Aiken and Classical junior Tayler Green – reveled in helping youngsters become more accustomed to water. They ranged in age from perhaps four to 10.
“I’ve been doing these youth swim lessons since September, and I love seeing them so happy after they accomplish something,” Aiken said. “I remember one kid named Gabriel, who was about eight, and he couldn’t do any kind of swimming skill at all; this was about two months ago.
“The moment he entered my class, he was so excited to learn, but I could see he didn’t have much skill; he was having problems learning, and he became discouraged,” he continued. “He didn’t have much confidence, but then – one day – I taught him how to kick above water, and he did it! When I told him he did it perfectly, his face just lit up.
“I was ecstatic, too; I knew I taught him something he’d never forget.”
Green indicated approximately half of the children in swim lessons do so with some sort of financial aid package, and she’s thrilled the YMCA has found another way to help kids learn how to swim.
“I love knowing that the children are getting something out of it,” she stated. “You can tell when they get something you’re telling them to do because they’ll try it, then look up at you, like, ‘Was that right?’ When you smile at them and say, ‘Yes, you did it!’ they flip. They get so excited.
“I think this scholarship initiative is a really good idea,” she continued. “It’s tremendously important to learn how to swim because of our proximity to the ocean, not to mention all of the swimming pools in our area.
“You know, a lot of my friends don’t know how to swim, and they’ll ask me to teach them. It’s surprising to see how many people can’t, so I’m excited to begin teaching the scholarship kids. I want them to know what to do when they’re in the water.”
To inquire about scholarship applications or how to qualify for financial aid assistance, call Cassidy at (401) 727-7900 or Quinn at (401) 769-0791.