Making life saving skills accessible

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This article was published 25/07/2019 (2445 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

One drowning is one too many.

That was the message from Kent Paterson, president and chief executive officer of YMCA-YWCA of Winnipeg, when he announced a new “collaborative initiative” between the Y and the Ready, Set, Swim! Foundation that will provide free swim lessons for up to 384 children and youth between this fall and spring 2020.

“Education is key to drowning prevention,” Paterson said, adding that between 2012 and 2016, nearly a quarter of people who drowned in Manitoba were children. “People who have barriers to learn to swim are more at risk.”

Beginning in the fall, the Y will offer lessons to children who qualify for the program at both its downtown and Elmwood-Kildonan locations.

Rishona Hyman, founder of the Ready, Set, Swim! Foundation, said that she expects students to come from all corners of the city, but that the two locations were chosen because they are easily accessible to the most amount of people.

“We’re happy to be anywhere,” she said. “Our goal is to add locations over time.”

Children who are accepted will take 30-minute lessons over eight weeks beginning Oct. 12. Parents and guardians will also receive two to three classroom lessons during that time.

The downtown lessons run Saturdays between 1 and 5 p.m., while the lessons at the 454 Kimberly Ave. location will take place between 3 and 5 p.m. on Sundays. Participants will also receive a Y Winnipeg membership for the duration of the lessons.

 Hyman explained that students will remain in the free program until they have learned basic survival swimming techniques without the use of a life jacket, which include rolling forward into water, swimming forward, and treading water for at least 60 seconds.

“We feel this program is crucial,” said Wendy Yates, aquatic program director at the Elmwood-Kildonan  Y. “Everyone should learn how to swim.”

For more information, visit www.ywinnipeg.ca or www.readysetswim.ca to register your child.

Sheldon Birnie
Community Journalist

Sheldon Birnie is a reporter/photographer for the Free Press Community Review. The author of Missing Like Teeth: An Oral History of Winnipeg Underground Rock (1990-2001), his writing has appeared in journals and online platforms across Canada, the U.S. and the U.K. A husband and father of two young children, Sheldon enjoys playing guitar and rec hockey when he can find the time. Email him at sheldon.birnie@freepress.mb.ca Call him at 204-697-7112

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