Broward County, Florida – Florida leads the nation to children’s drownings. We are surrounded by beautiful bodies of water and that is why the security of swimming is more than a story. It is a priority for us.
In this story of “swimming from the south of Florida”, Nicole Perez of local section 10 discovered all the details of an initiative to ensure that the children of the county of Miami-Dade learn to swim and it is free for parents and caregivers.
It is a statistic that nobody wants to hear. Drown is the main cause of death for children aged 1 to 14 in the county of Miami-Dade.
The objective of the Zero Drowingings Miami-Dade initiative is to improve community water safety.
Nicole Sugarman of Miami-Dade Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces is there to let the community know that the program offers free swim safety lessons for 4 years in kindergarten in certain childcare centers during the school year.
“They control breathing, they jump, they turn their body and reach the wall. The goal is to bring them to a point where if they fall into a swimming pool, they know what to do, “said Sugarman.
The lessons are carried out in the form of outings on the ground. They last 30 minutes and focus on a variety of skills.
The program also offers swimming lessons after school and summer.
“We make it imperative for the parent to understand, you may like water, but it is a safety measure for these children to learn to swim, because it is very, very important,” said Sugarman.
Demoni Woods is a young local woman 10 who spoke who collects all the advantages of the program in her community.
“First of all, I just started to learn to kick and learn to be above the water. But now I know how to love water.
Woods is 11 years old, and she has advice for other children who could be a little nervous to enter the water.
“It’s good because if you continue, then you will be more comfortable and it’s like, it’s good and that will make you feel better,” said Woods.
For his mother, it was obvious to register her daughter in swimming lessons.
“We have lakes, we have channels, we have the ocean, we have water parks, we have swimming pools. So there is water everywhere. And I think it is important that children know how to swim, “said Demoni’s mother.
The Children’s Trust launched the initiative in April 2024. According to the organization, the program ensured water safety and swimming courses at more than 2,500 children in the county of Miami-Dade of 66 elementary schools and preschool centers. The program intends to increase to 10,000 participants in 2025-2026 before reaching the target of 20,000 children per year in 2026-2027.
For more information on the program and the details to be registered, click on this link.
Swimming class resources in southern Florida::
For more information on swimming lessons when visiting the YMCA: https://ymcasouthflorida.org/swim-lessons/.
The Florida Department of Health of Broward provides free swimming coupons to residents, as well as a new program of lifeguard and swimming scholarships to help make the shortage of swimming instructors.
For more information, visit Watersmartbroward.org.
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