YMCA offers swim lessons that can save lives

According to the Centers for Disease Control, aside from birth defects, drowning is the leading cause of death in children age 1-4. The organization, Stop Drowning Now, said an average of 3,500-4,000 people drown every year in the U.S.

The good news is swim lessons can save lives, and the Towpath Trail YMCA in Navarre will offer plenty of swimming classes for all ages this summer and throughout the year.

“We currently have lessons for ages 6 months to adults,” said Susan Scheetz, swim lesson coordinator for the YMCA. “Our number-one priority is safety around water. We even have a mural painted on our wall that says, ‘The world is 70% water, children are 100% curious.’”

Scheetz said giving your child swimming lessons is a proactive way to protect them.

“We really focus on helping them feel safe in the water, and if they do get in trouble, they know what to do, like float on your back or how to tread water,” Scheetz said. “We also teach them that if they’re with somebody and that person is having a problem, you don’t jump in to try to save them because now there are two people in trouble.”

The YMCA offers group lessons, individual lessons and something called buddy lessons. “So if you have two kids and none of our group lesson times work out for you, we can always do buddy lessons,” Scheetz said.

Swimming classes are $36 for six weeks for members of the Towpath Trail YMCA and $72 for nonmembers.

“Occasionally, we also offer swim instructor classes,” Scheetz said. “So if someone is interested in working with our youth swim program, we train that person to our curriculum.”

Lifeguard training also is available. “One of our lifeguards is an instructor who teaches three to four people at a time to provide more individual attention,” Scheetz said.

Scheetz taught elementary school for 35 years. “So I have a teaching background, and when I retired from teaching, I substituted the classroom for the pool,” she said. “I’ve been teaching swim lessons ever since.”

Not just child’s play

Swimming lessons are not only important for children, but also for all ages to prevent accidental drowning.

“I’ve worked with a lot of adults who had a fear of water or had a near-death experience or just something that scared them,” Scheetz said. “They needed to overcome that panic.”

Scheetz said she has taught adults up to 80 years of age who had put learning to swim on their bucket lists.

World’s Largest Swimming Lesson coming

On Thursday, June 23, the Y will participate in the World’s Largest Swimming Lesson, a global drowning-prevention event launched by the World Waterpark Association in 2010.

“The organization gives us a specific swim lesson to provide, and we will do that lesson in all of our swim classes that day,” Scheetz said. “We will also set aside a time, to be determined, for anyone who wants to participate in the event.”

Summer swim lesson schedule

The first six-week summer swim session will begin June 7 and go through July 16, with each lesson lasting 45 minutes. A second summer session will run July 26 through Sept. 3.

Classes for age 3-5 will take place Thursdays at 5:30 p.m. or Saturdays at 9 a.m. Classes for age 5-12 are Tuesdays at 5:30 p.m. or Saturdays at 10 a.m.

Classes for children age 6 months to 3 years are Saturday at 11 a.m. Children must be accompanied by a parent in the pool.

One-on-one private lessons are available for swimmers of all ages and abilities. The 30-minute classes are $20 for members and $33 for nonmembers. Those 30-minute buddy lessons mentioned earlier run $15 for members and $22 for nonmembers.

Call 330-879-0800. The Towpath Trail YMCA is located at 1226 Market St. NE in Navarre.