UNCW swim and dive teams teaching ‘vital, lifesaving’ skills to D.C. Virgo students
Summer may be winding down, but water safety is a priority year-round.
WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — Summer may be winding down, but water safety is a priority year-round.
According to the CDC, drowning is one of the top three causes of unintentional death in people younger than 29. Black children between the ages of 10 and 14 years old are nearly eight times as likely to drown in swimming pools than white children.
Program founder and director Ann Freeman developed the pilot program as part of her master’s degree research project, inspired by her personal experiences of losing a classmate and her nephew to drowning. UNCW’s Office of Community Engagement and Applied Learning is collaborating with Freeman, UNCW Athletics, and community partners NSea Swim Foundation and the City of Wilmington to offer swim lessons.
“Coming here and seeing kids 12, 13, 14 years old they can’t swim. They have to stay in the shallow end of the pool,” Freeman said. “It makes sense, if you’re going to be a pool, make sure these kids learn how to swim. It’s a vital, lifesaving skill that everybody needs to have.”
For Freeman, making sure the program was accessible was important when putting it together. She says by holding the swim lessons at public pools like the Earl Jackson Pool and Splash Pad in Wilmington, it allows many students at D.C. Virgo to walk to the pool.
“The program helps us learn how to swim so just in case we’re in an emergency in the ocean or pool, we can save ourselves,” 10-year-old Kendra said. “They help you take time, so if you’re a slow learner don’t worry because they’ll help you.”
Kendra is in her second year of the program. She says the second year is even more fun because she’s learning even more about treading water and spending time in the deep end.
The lessons are led by the UNCW Swim and Dive teams. Swimming senior Sarah Olson says the best part of being involved with the program is watching the swimmers progress.
“If they fall into a pool they can float on their backs and get back to the wall, that’s like our main thing. The other thing is we just want them to be happy in the water,” Olson said.
For UNCW Swim and Dive Head Coach Bobby Guntoro, the program is bigger than just the Wilmington community. He hopes to see other universities implement similar programs.
“I think part of our responsibility as a swimming community is to teach the community to be safe in the water,” Guntoro said. “Think about how many universities have swimming and diving programs and we can be the blueprint in the nation.”
As the program continues to grow, Freeman hopes to see it expand beyond D.C. Virgo. She wants it to eventually be available to all public school students.
