For nine mornings in mid-May, SIPOA welcomed Be Water Wise (BWW) to the Lake House outdoor pool area. BWW is the educational program of Waterproof, Inc., a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that provided free water safety and swim lessons this year to 38 first and 19 second graders from Mt. Zion Elementary School. This program, staffed fully by volunteers, was supported by the Charleston County School District and approved by the SIPOA Board in November 2024.

These remarkable results were achieved in just 9 days thanks to an entire village of dedicated and caring volunteers. By the conclusion of the program, the students achieved:

• Wall Walk – hand over hand traveling the pool wall.
  • 95% of grade 1 and 100% of grade 2 students
• Exit – ability to exit the pool from deep water without stairs.
  • 95% and 100%
• Back Float – starfish-like floating on their backs with no movement.
  • 66% and 68%
• Back Swim – backstroke swim
  • 55% and 50%
• Half Width – swim half of the way across the width of the pool.
  • 58% and 50%
• Width – swim the entire width of the pool unassisted.
  • 50% and 50%

The impact of this program was significant, not only on these children but also on the 22 Seabrook Island community volunteers who worked as fully certified swim coaches and deck helpers. Here are their words:

Karen Fitzpatrick | This spring is my fourth time to work with the students from Mount Zion, and I keep returning because I believe in this program with all my heart and soul. Every child who participates is impacted in a positive way, and every child makes progress from their starting point. And the joy on a child’s face when he or she suddenly realizes they are swimming on their own is something that touches your heart beyond words forever! Every child who participates wants to learn, and they greatly need this opportunity!

Jim Sporn | It was another incredibly rewarding experience to teach the kids how to begin – or improve on – their swimming skills and, most importantly, how to be safe in the water. Early in the second week, I had all four of my students swimming the width of the pool unassisted, without a life vest and, with little urging, had two students swim the length of the pool unassisted. They were all hugely motivated to show how well they had learned all of the safety skills we taught them. Their teachers are extremely patient and dedicated, which helps the kids – and the program – to succeed.

Cindy Stigall | This year, I was a new instructor for Water Wise. Seeing the progress these students made was truly a rewarding experience for me. My special needs child went from being afraid of the water to eagerly entering the water and going under and coming up with a smile on his face. Every time we teach a child to swim, we are one step closer to never having a child drown. I understand why Dr. Derek is so passionate about this program.

Maureen Harvey | My takeaway from my swim experience: Little swimmers march in on the first day of camp with so many different abilities, personalities, and backgrounds. And then the magic begins. Paired 1 to 1 with a coach, the swimmers blossom under the attention. The joy in our Seabrook pool for those two weeks is overwhelming. I worked with one student who had his own set of challenges and had never been in a body of water his entire young life. Terrified to walk down the pool steps at first, he was swimming under water by week’s end. I asked him each day how the water felt and every day he gave the same answer…”happy.” This swim program proves itself out hugely in the number of children who by the end of camp can now swim. The magic happens when our devoted village of coaches pours their skills and dedicated hearts in these very deserving little ones.

Mike Sankovich | Once again it has been a wonderful experience working with the children visiting the outdoor pool at the Lake House. I am hopeful that the use of our facilities will become a tradition for years to come. Many of these children arrive and are terrified of water but overcome that fear and end up learning to swim. It is a pleasure to behold. Just a reminder, we are expecting a larger class next year and need volunteers. If you care to learn more about the experience, please give me a call.

Lucy Hoover | Although I have coached for several years, there is always something new to inspire me to continue participating in this vital activity. We have enough volunteers to work one-on-one with the children, and the results are impressive. Children who would be hesitant to walk into the water on the first day, by the beginning of the second week, are determined to swim. We start instruction step by step using aids such as kickboards or noodles, which are very helpful. However, that is not “real” swimming in their eyes. Even if their kicks and strokes are weak and inefficient, the students WANT to swim. So off they go with no aids and a nervous coach beside them. With each try, they swim a little farther and their arms and legs become more coordinated. The big smiles of real accomplishment from these six and seven-year-olds are priceless! The coach’s feeling of real accomplishment is even more rewarding.

Greg Saver | 2025 is my second year as an in-pool instructor for the Water Wise swimming instruction program. While the students vary widely in their water skills, from barely able to get their faces wet to those who already swim as well as some of the instructors, they all seem to share two qualities – a genuine desire to improve their water skills and an ability to listen to instructions and then apply what they heard to actual in the water experience. The desire to improve was not too surprising to me since I assumed that was why they were there (that and possibly getting out of class for 8 mornings). But, the ability to really listen and then apply what they heard did surprise me. I think I assumed that, like most first graders, getting their attention would be difficult and frustrating. What I experienced was quite different from my assumption. I could literally see the concentration on their faces when I would explain the next step in the instruction and I was almost always surprised by their efforts to put that instruction into practice. Not all students progressed at the same rate, but every student I instructed really did try to put what I said into practice in the water. Yes, there was some “play time”, but not nearly as much as I expected and the sense of achievement once a skill was learned and put to use was obvious. The students in this program clearly came away with not only improved water skills but also with a personal sense of accomplishment that made our time in the water very satisfying.

Steve & Leslie Haines | This is our third year with the program and our number one observation is how happy and enthused the children are each morning, no matter their swim progression. We think it’s a combination of the variation in daily routine, the well developed curriculum, the individual attention from the volunteers and of course, learning to swim during school in a beautiful pool on Seabrook Island.

Derek Fyfe | Despite having been a teacher with the Waterproof Inc., now “Be Water Wise” program for the last 12 years, I am still deeply moved each time I witness the pure joy of not only the student but also the coach, each time they master a new swimming skill. I continue to share the same elation when a student swims across the pool unassisted for the first time in their lives. It never gets old!

Katherine Kunkelman | I am probably the senior member of the Water Wise team. With Derek’s dedication, Joyce’s leadership as Activities Chair, Nic Porter and the Lake House Staff, the Water Wise program has evolved into a positive Seabrook Island outreach activity. We all hope children retain safety information that was stressed throughout the 2 weeks.

Submitted by Joyce Phillips, Amenities & Activities Chair
Photos by Maureen Healy