YMCA Makes Splash With Swim Lessons For Long Branch Students

LONG BRANCH, NJ – The YMCA of Greater Monmouth County recently offered free swim lessons and water safety classes for third-grade students in Long Branch at the city’s new community pool at Pleasure Bay Park.

“The Y recognizes that there’s a need for children to learn how to swim and be safe in and around water,” Laurie Goganzer, president and CEO of the YMCA of Greater Monmouth County, said in a press release.

“We are pleased to partner with the city of Long Branch and the Long Branch School District to provide Long Branch children essential water safety and swimming skills this summer."

Sixty third-graders from Long Branch public schools took part in a two-week water safety program from July 20-29 funded by a grant from the YMCA of the USA. The program included swim lessons and basic swim techniques like floating, blowing bubbles, freestyle stroke, front crawl, and other fundamental water safety and survival skills.

"We are very excited to be partnering with the YMCA to offer free swim lessons to our Long Branch school students. Offering free swim lessons was very important to our administration when we first made plans to open a pool. It is a vital, lifelong skill that we hope these students will carry with them forever," said Long Branch Mayor John Pallone.

Markus Rodriguez, director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for the Long Branch Public School District, called the water safety program a “generational gift” that will impact the students and “hopefully provide a lifelong passion and appreciation for the joys of being a part of a community that counts the beach and the ocean and water activities as an integral part of life. We can’t thank the YMCA enough for doing this.''