On a recent sweltering day on the east side of Chattanooga, eight children from the Churchville neighborhood perfected their freestyle strokes in the deep end of the Carver Recreation Center community pool.
Four weeks ago, many of those same kids were scared to test their self-taught swimming skills in water above their heads.
None had ever received formal swimming training until this summer, when they signed up for the free, four-week pilot program sponsored by Community Impact, the city of Chattanooga and the Churchville Neighborhood Association, said program coordinator Kimberly Horton.
"We had two that wouldn't get in the deep end at first and are now actually swimming distance in the deep end," she said. "A lot of the kids have just seen potential in themselves they didn't know they had."
The swimming program aims to cut down the disproportionately high risk of drowning for minority children, as well as provide a positive social outlet in the children's lives, said Dr. Clark White, neighborhood manager for Community Impact who pitched the swim program idea to the city earlier this year.
Seventy percent of black children and 58 percent of Hispanic children can't swim, compared to 40 percent of white children, according to a study conducted this year by the University of Memphis and commissioned by USA Swimming, the national governing organization for competitive swimming.
The study was based on a survey of 2,000 children in six metropolitan areas, including Memphis.
The drowning rates for black children ages 5 to 14 are more than three times rate of white children, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
"It's unbelievable," said Peggy Grall, who heads up the aquatics department for Chattanooga. "Our goal is to teach the kids strong-enough skills that they can be part of our Parks and Recreation swim team."
Twelve-year-old Kendra Anderson discovered strong swimming skills that put her in the running for a place on the city's swimming team, program organizers said.
Swim goggles pushed up on her forehead, Kendra offered the following advice poolside at the Carver Center last week: "For any young swimmer, never give up ... and have good sportsmanship."
DROWNING FACTSIn 2007, males were 3.7 times more likely than females to die from unintentional drownings in the U.S.In 2007, there were 3,443 fatal unintentional drownings in the U.S.The drowning rate of black children ages 5 to 14 is 3.1 times the rate for white children of the same age.Source: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
More than the cost of swim lessons, parental fear of water was the major factor in minority children not getting introduced to swimming, according to the University of Memphis study.
Churchville Neighborhood Association president Charlotte Anderson said she understands that. Having never learned to swim herself, she had a persistent fear of water until she took a water fitness class, she said. Now her three grandchildren - including Kendra - are taking part in Carver Rec Center swim program.
"A lot of the kids, they just kind of feel their own way through swimming. They don't actually know what to do - they just teach each other," she said.
But as her grandkids have learned proper swimming techniques, they realized the limits to their skills, she said.
"They didn't know it as well as they thought they did," she said.
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