May marks National Water Safety Month, and one local pool service company has teamed up with a non-profit to offer free swim lessons.
Pool Scouts has partnered with Hope Floats Foundation for a third year to offer free swim lessons for children in need as the hot months of summer approach.
Drowning is the leading cause of unintentional injury or death for children aged one to four. For those aged five to 19, drowning is the third leading cause of intentional injury deaths, per the Children’s Safety Network.
Each year in the United States, nearly 900 children and adolescents from ages 0 to 19 die from unintentional drowning, per the Children’s Safety Network.
Pool Scouts of McKinney and Northeast DFW offers cleaning services, repairs, and maintenance with trained pool service experts. Hope Floats Foundation partners with swim schools to provide scholarships for low-income children’s swimming lessons. The two entities started their partnership in 2020.
The Dallas Express spoke with John Breton, president of Pool Scouts of McKinney and Northeast DFW, to learn more.
“A lot of kids have been impacted who wouldn’t otherwise have the opportunity. We’ve been very pleased and happy with our partnership, and [those at Hope Floats] have been very willing to help us identify the needs of local families,” Breton told The Dallas Express. “Not only have they helped raise the funds, but also spread awareness around the importance of these preventable accidents that can be avoided.”
Breton looks forward to the continued partnership with Hope Floats to promote safety and offer swim lessons.
“For us to be able to reach more people, whether they are Pool Scouts customers or just those with swimming pools, it’s about wanting to reach more who have a need and don’t know where to turn to to get swim lessons done,” Breton said. “Not only do these lessons spark safety initially, but then a love for water and appreciation.”
For those interested in seeing if their child qualifies for paid swim lessons, fill out an application on Hope Float’s website.