Celebrate National Water Safety Month This May 

The Red Cross has had a long history of providing services and training in water safety to the American public and our partners for the past 100 years! By creating the first national water safety program in the United States, the American Red Cross became a pioneer in the field with scientifically-founded trainings and programs. 

Watch this video on the American Red Cross Aquatic Centennial Campaign here. This campaign launched in 2014 to further reduce drowning rates in communities across the nation, making a real impact in communities across the country. 

Since then, we’ve taught more than 45,000 sets of swim lessons and trained nearly 1,000 lifeguards and Water Safety Instructors. Youth play a vital role in this cause. In 2019, two New Jersey lifeguards saved a young boy’s life with the lifeguard training they received from the American Red Cross. For their amazing feat, the pair was awarded the Red Cross Lifesaving Award for Professional Responders. Read their full story here.  

If your region provides these courses, sign up for lifeguarding or swimming + water safety training today. To get even more involved, encourage your club to work with your region to host a training event for instructors in Training Services. You can also work on hosting a water safety training for children, teaching best practices on how to stay safe in the water. You can even make it themed! Promote within your community. You might be able to recruit parents and community members to get involved with the American Red Cross, too. 

Above all, always feel free to reach out to the National Youth Council for guidance in your youth volunteer journey. Have questions? Check out our Office Hours program. Also, take a look at our Red Cross Club Activity Guides here on RedCrossYouth.org.  

– Ian Lee, National Youth Council Member, Communications Working Group Lead