Courtesy: US Masters Swimming
SARASOTA, Fla. – Nearly 70 adult learn-to-swim lessons providers nationwide will receive funding and education support from the USMS Swimming Saves Lives Foundation in 2020.
The grants totaling more than $100,000 are given in support of U.S. Masters Swimming’s efforts to make more adults safer in and around water. These programs offer swim lessons to adults at a reduced cost or for free and are most often led by USMS-certified adult learn-to-swim instructors. These instructors have been educated by USMS in the techniques and methods that work best for adult-beginner swimmers.
In 2019, nearly 2,000 adults took swim lessons in SSLF programs around the country, making them less likely to be among the 10 people who drown every day in the United States.
The benefit of adults learning to swim goes beyond the student. Research shows that children of an adult who doesn’t know how to swim have only a 19 percent chance of learning.
“Adult swim lessons save lives,” says Bill Brenner, chief operating officer of USMS. “We here at USMS and the foundation are committed to making more people safer around water. The SSLF grant programs and our certified adult learn-to-swim instructors are making a difference in whole families.”
SSLF was established as the charitable arm of USMS in 2010 and is supported by donations from USMS members and friends and has awarded nearly $700,000 since its inception.
USMS is the national governing body of adult competitive swimming in the United States.
The 2020 USMS Swimming Saves Lives Foundation grant programs are listed below by state. Information about individual programs can be found here.
Alaska
Swim Fit Alaska, Fairbanks
Alabama
Memorial Park Natatorium, Jasper
Arkansas
Pine Bluff Aquatic Center, Pine Bluff
Arizona
Arizona Aquatic Sports Foundation/Mesa Aquatics Club, Mesa
Ahwatukee Community Swim & Tennis Center, Gilbert
Northern Arizona University Campus Rec, Flagstaff
SaddleBrooke Swim Club, Tucson
California
Embarcadero YMCA, San Francisco
SilverPeak Performance, Sunland
Richmond Swims, Richmond
Walnut Creek Masters, Walnut Creek
Salvation Army Kroc Center San Diego, San Diego
Competitive Tri-Swim Masters, Rancho Cucamonga
Cal Rec Sports, UC Berkeley, Berkeley
Marin Aquatic Masters, Novato
SAMO Masters, Culver City
Temescal Aquatic Masters, Oakland
District of Columbia
C and O Aquatics, Washington, D.C.
Delaware
YMCA of Delaware, Dover
Florida
For Fun, For Fitness, For Life, The Villages
Sarasota Tsunami Masters, Sarasota
Palm Beach Masters, Jupiter
Swamp Water Aquatics, Gainesville
SWIMS Foundation, Overland Park
Waddle’s Adult Swim Academy, Sarasota
Orthotic and Prosthetic Activities Foundation, Orlando
Georgia
YMCA of Metro Atlanta, Atlanta
Kennesaw State Univ. Dept. of Sports and Rec. Aquatics Dept., Kennesaw
Swim Beyond the Boundaries, Atlanta
Idaho
Salvation Army Kroc Center Coeur d’Alene, Coeur d’Alene
Moscow Chinooks Masters, Moscow
Illinois
Saluki Masters Swim Club, Carbondale
Indiana
Zionsville Aquatic Masters, Zionsville
Kentucky
Central ALTS, Louisville
Clear Creek Masters, Shelbyville
Western Kentucky Green Gators, Bowling Green
Louisiana
Gulf Coast Multi-Sport, Slidell
Massachusetts
YMCA of Martha’s Vineyard, Vineyard Haven
Worcester Area Masters, Worcester
Charles River Aquatics Masters, Boston
Maryland
YMCA of the Chesapeake, Easton
Hopkins School of Medicine Swim Club, Baltimore
Maine
Penobscot Bay YMCA, Rockport
Michigan
Grand Traverse Bay YMCA, Traverse City
Minnesota
Twin Cities Aquatics Cooperative, Minneapolis
Missouri
Megan Cameron Swim Coaching, Joplin
Montana
Bozeman Masters Swim Club, Bozeman
North Carolina
Gaston Aquatics, Gastonia
Greensboro Aquatics Center, Greensboro
New York
Nickel City Splash, North Tonawanda
Ohio
Bowling Green Swim Club, Bowling Green
Rhythm & Stroke LLC, Beechwood
Y of Greater Cincinnati: Clermont and M.E. Lyons branches, Cincinnati
Oregon
Grants Pass Family YMCA, Grants Pass
Hood River Valley Parks and Rec District, Hood River
Faculty-Staff Fitness OSU, Corvallis
South Carolina
Greenville Splash Masters, Greenville
Grand Strand Masters Swimming, N. Myrtle Beach
Palmetto Masters, Mount Pleasant
Texas
Fort Worth Drowning Prevention Coalition, Fort Worth
Texas Ford Aquatics Masters, Frisco
PowerWatt Coaching, Brownsville
Utah
Queer Utah Aquatic Club, Salt Lake City
Virginia
Sport & Health, McLean, McLean
Vermont
Stowe Swimmers Foundation, Stowe
Upper Valley Aquatic Center, White River Junction
Washington
YMCA of Greater Seattle-Bellevue Family YMCA, Bellevue
Wisconsin
Making Waves Milwaukee, Milwaukee
