Summer Swimfest Educates

With the summer months beginning, the city of San Bernardino held its third annual Summer Swimfest: Operation Splash at the Perris Hill Park’s Jerry Lewis Swim Center, educating hundreds of families on a safer summer around the water last Friday, June 7. With two swimming sessions held from noon to 2:30 p.m. and 3:30 to 5 p.m., the event was sponsored by many different organizations in San Bernardino County such as Kaiser Permanente, San Bernardino Counties First Five and Safe Kids Inland Empire. Swimmers and their families were not allowed near the pool area until they understood the basics of swimming and safe water skills. Jade McCurry and her mother, Brandie Dewart, were both excited and thankful for what the event had taught them. “My favorite thing I learned was CPR,” McCurry said. “You have to keep their heart beating and call 911.” Her mother, already CPR certified, explained that her children are already good swimmers. “We have a pool at home, so these guys have taught other kids how to swim,” Dewart said. As all of the anxious swimmers lined up in the hot sun to go into the swimming pool, a few public figures and organizers of the event had a couple of messages for the long line of swimmers. San Bernardino City Mayor Pat Morris rallied the crowd and encouraged each parent to keep an eye on their children around the water this summer, noting that the majority of drowning victims are under the age of five. “To have these pools funded and open for summer recreation is critical. If [the youth] weren’t here, they’d be out on the streets somewhere, hot and sweaty, doing stuff that might not be desirable for our community. These pools help make a safer community,” Morris said. Michelle Parker, Safe Kids Coordinator, urged parents to watch not only their children but all the children around the pool. “Please keep your eyes on your children. Life guards are great, but ultimately the kids are your responsibility. Keep your eyes open,” Parker said. Greg Christian, executive director at Kaiser Foundation Hospitals and Health Plan, presented a $30,000 check to San Bernardino: Operation Splash to help keep the swimming complex from being shut down due to the economic state of the city and county. “[We want to] offer the opportunity for the community to engage as a family, and the youth to understand the importance of exercise, and a chance to get off the streets and enjoy the pool,” Christian said. The event attracted over a thousand people between the two free swim sessions, encouraging swimmers and their families to have fun and be safe by the water not only this summer, but all year long.