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YMCA Recognizes National Water Safety Month

For many of us around the country, the month of May signifies the unofficial start of summer. The weather gets warmer and soon parents and kids alike will flock to public and residential pools and beaches to beat the heat.

As fun as this season is, it’s also a time to heed caution, because sadly, three children die every day from drowning in the United States.

Drowning is the second-leading cause of unintentional injury-related death for children ages 1 to 14 years old in the United States. The stats are particularly troubling for Latino and African-American children, as they are even more at risk based on research.

That’s why during the month of May, the YMCA of the USA recognizes National Water Safety Month and has pledged to provide more than 18,000 scholarships for free swim lessons to children from underserved communities—as a part of its Safety Around Water program.

Learning to swim at the YMCA was one of my favorite childhood memories. I loved taking classes and competing in meets, and even attending Family Swim Night on Fridays with my parents. Growing up in coastal Massachusetts, we were always at the water, and having the confidence that I knew how to swim was a huge relief for my parents whether we were taking a family beach day, going on vacation, or sending me off to camp where water activities were practically inevitable.

After moving to New York City, I was surprised to see how may of my peers who grew up in more urban environments never learned how to swim, and still do not know how to this day. This is a great initiative from the YMCA to help communities who are more at risk by providing these swim scholarships.

Check out the below infographic for some more alarming statistics from the Y about water safety.