For more information contact:
Madison Area YMCA
Marketing & Communications Department
smcevoy@madisonymca.org

For Immediate Release

The Madison Area YMCA Receives 2019 Grant Funding
from the USA Swimming Foundation

(Madison, NJ) – March 28, 2019– The Madison Area YMCA was chosen as one of 85 Make a Splash programs in the U.S. to receive grant money from the USA Swimming Foundation in early 2019. The awarded money will go toward water safety instruction and swim lessons for the children enrolled at the F.M. Kirby Children’s Center of the Madison Area YMCA. The USA Swimming Foundation awarded a total of $507,461 to programs across the country that will provide swim lessons to an estimated 25,000 children.

“We are thrilled to be chosen for this grant,” said Madison Area YMCA Aquatics Director Lisa Shannon. “The money we received will be put toward an instructional “Make a Splash Week” at the F.M. Kirby Children’s Center that will provide all of the preschool children water safety instruction and swim lessons.”

The Y is America’s swim instructor. As a nonprofit organization dedicated to strengthening community, the Y considers it a priority and a responsibility to prevent drowning (88% of kids who have drowned were under some sort of supervision) and improve health outcomes by cultivating physical, cognitive, and social-emotional well-being through aquatics. For the last 100 years, the YMCA has taught 1 million kids each year at 2,700 YMCAs across the country in 2,200 pools how to swim.

The USA Swimming Foundation vetted 241 applications through a competitive annual review process and chose 85 Make a Splash Local Partner programs to receive funding, 26 of whom are first-time USA Swimming Foundation grant recipients.

“It’s an incredible feeling to know that USA Swimming Foundation funding will be used to create a valuable swimming experience for tens of thousands of children who may not have had the opportunity to learn how to swim,” USA Swimming Foundation Executive Director Debbie Hesse said. “We are thrilled with the depth of this year’s Make a Splash Local Partner applicant pool and we couldn’t be prouder to support these exciting and lifesaving opportunities for children across the country. We owe a tremendous thank you to our partners and donors, who continue to make a difference.”

To date, 7.5 million children have received the lifesaving gift of swim lessons through the USA Swimming Foundation Make a Splash Local Partner network, comprised of 1,000 qualified lesson providers across the nation. To learn more, visit www.usaswimmingfoundation.org/makeasplash.

For a full list of 2019 USA Swimming Foundation grant recipients, visit 
www.usaswimmingfoundation.org.

The Madison Area YMCA is a 501©3 cause-driven charitable organization dedicated to strengthening community through youth development, healthy living and social responsibility.

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