A February report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) lists drowning as the leading cause of death among children 1-4 years old. Following decades of decline, drowning rates are on the rise again in the United States mainly due to the lack of basic swimming and water safety skills training.
One institution that has significantly contributed to drowning prevention and transformed the way both kids and adults learn to swim is Florida-based Baby Otter Swim School. The idea of water safety struck co-founder Mindy York nearly 50 years ago when she found her 17-month-old daughter at the bottom of a pool unresponsive. “If I did not know CPR, my daughter would not be here today,” says York, 68.
Following the incident, York and her business partner, Marlene Bloom, embarked on a lifelong mission to prevent children from drowning. Their efforts resulted in a five-day water survival program that teaches children as young as nine months how to react if they fall into the water.
Called “Turn, Kick, Reach,” children learn to hold their breath, swim, kick and, most importantly, turn around and swim back to where they fell.
Using similar lesson plans taught in a classroom and meeting the same standards as the Red Cross, the program gained popularity due to its accessibility and professionalism. As a traveling swim school, instructors, who go through a minimum of 30 days intense training, meet families where they feel most comfortable, such as their homes or a local community pool.
The swimming lessons also serve as a bonding experience between parent and child. Starting from the second day up to the fifth day of the program, parents join their children in the water, allowing them to learn the proper techniques to practice with their child.
York explains the program’s five-day methodology compared to weekly group lessons: “We are inevitably cheaper in the long run because we get the job done in half the time, one-on-one for 30 minutes each lesson. Group classes are not as long with the personalized attention we feel these children need to succeed.”
What also sets Baby Otter apart is its unwavering commitment to special needs children. “Any impact on a community is another life saved,” she says.
The school also caters to adults who want to learn a new skill in life. A survey conducted by the CDC in May found that almost 40 million adults in the United States don’t know how to swim and over half (55%) have never taken a swimming lesson. “Some at 60 or 70 years old want to take it off their bucket list and they also learn in five days,” York says.
Fifty years and counting, the goal of Baby Otter Swim School is to make Florida a zero-drowning state. While kids might feel more curious about the water during the summer months, taking swim lessons is crucial year-round.
For more information, visit babyotterswimschool.com.
Photo courtesy of Baby Otter Swim School
Mindy York and Marlene Bloom as Baby Otter Swim School instructors