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Alexandria, VA (June 15, 2021) – Step Into Swim, an initiative of the Pool & Hot Tub Alliance (PHTA), has recently distributed $99,590 in grant funds to 22 facilities across the country, reaching 6,297 children.
Step Into Swim is the philanthropic arm of PHTA, dedicated to drowning prevention. Drowning is the number one cause of unintentional death in children ages 1-4. It has been proven that formal swim lessons reduce the risk of drowning by 90%, and Step Into Swim's grants are being used specifically for this purpose.
In May, the PHTA Board of Directors committed to donating $500,000 to fund the Step Into Swim grants. This first round of grants has reached all across the country, from California, Arizona, and Nevada to Florida, Alabama, and Georgia, and many states in between. The grants were distributed to YMCAs, community centers, city parks and recreation departments, camps, and other facilities that are giving swimming lessons to youth in their community.
“I am at a loss of words on the incredible generosity of our PHTA Board of Directors’ recent gift of $500,000 to Step Into Swim,” says Olympian Rowdy Gaines, PHTA Vice President of Partnerships & Development. “With these funds, we will be able to make an immediate impact across the country to so many lesson providers, specifically those who reach out to all of our underserved communities with free or reduced-cost lessons.”
Step Into Swim will continue to distribute grants to more facilities throughout the summer, reaching thousands of children and giving them the life-saving skill of swimming.
To learn more about Step Into Swim, visit www.stepintoswim.org.
For more information, please contact Janay Rickwalder, PHTA’s Vice President of Communications, at jrickwalder@phta.org or 703.357.3918.
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About Pool & Hot Tub Alliance and Step Into Swim:
The Pool & Hot Tub Alliance (PHTA), a non-profit organization with nearly 3,500 members from around the world, was established in 1956 to support, promote, and protect the common interests of the $36.5B pool, hot tub, and spa industry. PHTA provides education, advocacy, standards development, research, and market growth to increase our members’ professionalism, knowledge, and profitability. Additionally, PHTA facilitates the expansion of swimming, water safety and related research and outreach activities aimed at introducing more people to swimming, making swimming environments safer and keeping pools open to serve communities. For more information, visit www.phta.org.
Step Into SwimTM is an initiative of the Pool & Hot Tub Alliance and its foundation committed to safe swim education and drowning prevention. By investing in the next generation of swimmers through learn-to-swim programming, the Step Into Swim initiative instills confidence, empowers long-term participation in water activities, touts the positive benefits of water play, and advocates for safe practices. Since its inception in 2012, Step Into Swim has played a role in reducing drowning fatalities and has gifted swim lessons to more than 285,000 children with support from community organizations, partners, industry advocates, members and more. For more information, visit www.stepintoswim.org.
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