Storm is 13 years old now and for several years we considered what sort of social life he would have. What sort of extra curricular activities he would participate in and what his inter-personal relationships would be like. Storm was born with Down syndrome. We looked for activities outside of school, signed up for workshops and aligned ourselves with other parents of special needs children, but Storm wanted to swim.
Once on a trip to Orlando, my brother took him to the pool at the resort we were staying at. Storm was about 4 years old and fearless when it came to the water. He never hesitated, never stood and pondered or gave it a moments’ thought. Whenever he saw water, he wanted to be in it. This was a great concern for us because who was going to teach him to swim? Neither his father nor I knew how. Later, when he was about eight years old, we signed him up for a local YMCA’s program. He attends for 6 weeks each summer and his favorite thing of all is, of course, swimming. When we vacationed, there always had to be pools nearby because no matter where we went, or what other activities were being offered, our boys wanted to be in the pool. We live right near the beach, just seconds from the entire Atlantic Ocean, but we never encouraged our children to visit the beach, rarely ever took them there and pretty much steered clear of it because they couldn’t swim and we didn’t want them to be in danger.
Then we heard about the Swim Strong Foundation coming to our neighborhood high school. The classes were being offered to young children and we knew that we wanted Storm to participate but we weren’t sure if the program would accept a young boy with Down syndrome. Still, we decided to take a chance and it was the best thing we ever did. Not only did Swim Strong embrace our son by accepting him into a program that will forever enhance the quality of his life, but he has made friends and established relationships that will hopefully last him a lifetime. It’s no longer about just jumping into the water and floundering about aimlessly. Storm is learning to swim, to really swim and to do it in a way that is enjoyable as well as safe. The instructors are phenomenal. I’ve watched them work with my son and the patience and dedication they show is absolutely incredible.
I don’t know if anyone realizes how many children live on this peninsula and don’t know how to swim; the same could be said for their parents or caretakers. They are, therefore, surrounded by a body of water that presents a constant threat. My husband and I are just thrilled with the Swim Strong Foundation and all they are doing for our son – to increase his self confidence, provide him with an outlet for perpetual enjoyment and teach him to be a strong swimmer. We are forever grateful to Shawn and her staff. We look forward to the next session beginning in January and hope that Swim Strong will consider teaching adults one day soon as both my husband and I would like to be able to keep up with Storm.
Thanks, Swim Strong. You’ve really made a difference in the lives of this family.
Sincerely, Willie and Renae
