With pool openings and summer vacations here, it’s important to consider water safety habits.
According to the CDC, drowning is the leading cause of accidental death in the U.S. for children ages 4 and under. The organization says children of color are 5.5 times more likely than white children to drown. Preparing children to swim reduces the risk of drowning by 88%, according to the National Institutes of Health.
The Hope Floats Foundation seeks to limit the risks by partnering with swim schools to provide swimming scholarships for impoverished kids.
While the foundation is a national organization, area partners such as Pool Scouts work with Hope Floats to ensure communities have access to the best resources. Pool Scouts owner Rene Burrows opened her business to service more confident and comfortable family pool owners. The veteran-owned company is in its second year, with servicing opportunities in Gloucester, Camden and Burlington counties.
Burrows noted that it’s important to care about doing what is right, both when servicing private pools and in caring about the local community.
“As we go out to the pools,” she said, “we always chat with (families about) about what (they’re doing) to make sure that they aren’t going to have an incident where someone falls in the pool. We talk to people about safety fences or different types of covers, as well as swim lessons.”
Awareness is key when it comes to what people do around pools. Partnering with Hope Floats, Burrows hopes her business “impacts families by removing the financial barrier.”
“There are families out there that can just not afford swim lessons, and pool safety is so important,” she explained. “Hope Floats is really about (making sure) everybody knows how to swim.”
Burrows’ partnership with the national foundation began in 2021, nearly four years before her business began servicing family pools.
When individuals book pool servicing with Pool Scouts, they will be sent a link to donate to the Hope Floats Foundation. The business also donates to Hope Floats during May, which is National Water Safety Month.
