The COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing heat waves all over the country have exacerbated the need for both lifeguards and water safety training on a local level. ZAC Camps are held in partnership with local organizations, including Boys & Girls Clubs, American Red Cross, YMCAs, and first responders in local communities. This year, we were thrilled to continue our partnership with the Boys and Girls Club of Stamford and bring water safety lessons to 110 children in the Stamford, CT community.
Our award-winning 4-day-long camps, named in honor of 6-year-old Zachary Archer Cohn, teach children ages 5-9 valuable information to keep them safe in any body of water. At ZAC Camps, we use primary education stations — classroom activities, in-water swimming instruction, and first responder interaction – to reinforce essential safety lessons so both children and their parents learn to enjoy the water safely while understanding avoidable risks.
In the last decade, ZAC Camps have taught life-saving water safety skills to more than 20,000 children in at-risk communities nationwide, yet there is still much work left to do. The string of drownings following pool re-openings and this year’s heat waves invite us all to participate and think about how we can contribute to drowning prevention efforts in our communities. We invite parents to encourage their teens to become lifeguards and will continue on with our work building a National Drowning Prevention Plan.
