Watching her nephew extend the noodle out to ‘save’ a swimmer in a mock emergency situation, Debbie Perez smiled proudly.
Up from Winter Park, the 4-year old Gabriel and 6-year old Aidan received a lesson in water safety to kick start their summer vacation at the Palm Coast Aquatics Center on Saturday.
Planning to advocate for swim lessons when dropping the boys back off with her niece, Perez was pleased to see the seed planted from an early age regarding water safety.
“It’s all about learning and safety that sometimes our children don’t really get it from us as parents but sometimes from outside, and who better than a swimming pool coach,” shared Perez.
Marking the tenth annual pool safety day, City of Palm Coast aquatics supervisor Allie Rock-Yanochko worked with families, especially the youth, to practice critical life-saving skills ahead of the summer season with fun and interactive demonstrations and activities.
“We have little swim lessons going on, we’re going to have a few rescues, how kids can help out without putting themselves in danger, and we’re going to do kayaking safety, making sure you are wearing a life jacket and have a whistle, all that fun stuff,” she said.
A big push has been toward teaching little ones to float, a critical skill, according to Rock-Yanochko.
“If they fall in and they can float on their back, they can call for help,” she said. “That’s what we want – so somebody knows they’re in trouble.”
As part of the aquatics program for several years, Rock-Yanochko has continued to see interest grow in water safety and she’s encouraged by the engagement of parents in their child’s well-being.
“We have swim lessons throughout the summer for different age groups,” she said.
“I know right now most of our younger, pre-school lessons, people have been registering since we opened, so our Level Ones are booked up. We do offer private lessons and again, those are booked up. It’s great that they are because parents want to get their kids involved in swimming and make sure they know how to keep themselves safe in the water.”
“We’re working as hard as we can to get through those lessons and we’ve been non-stop. The safer the kids are in the water, the better it is. It’s a life skill to learn it at a young age.”
James Hirst, head of Palm Coast’s Parks and Recreation Department is seeing an increase in resident interest across the board for the activities offered through the department and at the Palm Coast Community Center as new residents discover the amenity-rich community.
“We’re seeing a lot of increase, definitely in our swim lessons. Last year we did over 630 swim lessons here,” said Hirst, whose department is concentrating on an action-packed summer schedule.
“We have our special events coming down with the July 3rd fireworks and Movies in the Park. We’re looking at what we continue to do and what we can do for the residents by offering more programs,” he said.
“We’re busting at the seams at the community center. Our programs and rentals have increased dramatically over the last few years, so that’s a good thing.”
Efforts have been ongoing across Flagler County during the month of May to raise awareness for National Drowning Prevention Month, and Flagler County Commissioner Joe Mullins stopped by the Frieda Zamba pool on Saturday to support the event.
“This program to support kids and water safety is so important in our community,” said Mullins, sharing his commitment to ensuring safety as a priority for families in Flagler’s growing communities.
“It’s very big. You can’t call this a retirement community. There’s so many kids, as you see here, out in the community. I’m excited to be here to support these events and I want to make sure that this community knows that safety is key. We as parents show we’re not going to tolerate anything but the safest area. In the county and in the city we need to work together to provide facilities like this, much better facilities like this, for our kids to be able to enjoy.”
Agencies and organizations are highlighting the importance of swimming lessons for learners of all ages, with some offering youth scholarships for lessons.
For more information, please visit:
Palm Coast Parks and Recreation Department/Aquatics Center: https://www.palmcoastgov.com/parks/aquatics-center , https://secure.rec1.com/FL/palm-coast-fl/catalog (classes/activities)
Water Safe, Inc. (Flagler): http://www.watersafefl.org/
Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club (Palm Coast): https://flaglerschools.com/community/belle_terre_swim___racquet_club
Aqua Journeys Swim School (Ormond): https://aquajourneyswimschool.com/
YMCA (Volusia): https://www.vfymca.org/programs/9077/summer-swim-lessons/?locations=-1
YMCA (First Coast/Northeast FL) https://fcymca.org/youth-swim/
