TUSTIN, Calif., Aug. 14. THE Swim for Life Foundation\u2019s fourth-annual ocean swim to raise awareness of water safety measures that are supported by the Orange County Fire Authority will take place at 10 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 17, at Corona del Mar\u2019s main beach. While the goal is to further drowning prevention efforts across the country, a young boy\u2019s dreams might also come a step closer to realization as 7-year-old Braxton Bilbrey, the Phoenix boy who in May completed the swim from Alcatraz to San Francisco, participates alongside Chad Hundeby, who held the record for swimming the English Channel for 11 years.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re thrilled that young Braxton will make the trip to California to participate in this event, which makes it possible to draw attention to our Safer 3 message against drowning,\u201d said Johnny Johnson, president and founder of the Swim for Life Foundation. \u201cBraxton has expressed a desire to try the English Channel swim, and what better \u2018buddy\u2019 to swim with now than Chad Hundeby!\u201d<\/p>\n
This year\u2019s swim, themed \u201cSwim with a Buddy,\u201d puts into practice the tenets of the \u201cSafer 3\u201d drowning prevention program developed by the Swim for Life Foundation and endorsed by the Orange County Fire Authority. Drowning continues to be one of the leading causes of accidental death for children under age 5 in the United States, a statistic targeted by the Foundation with its multi-layered approach to drowning prevention. <\/p>\n
Safer 3 calls for safer water (guarding against unauthorized entry to a pool or spa by a child with few swimming skills), safer kids (advocating constant adult supervision and swim lessons), and safer response (preparation for the possibility of a drowning incident by learning and reviewing CPR). Each participant will be asked to swim with a buddy to emphasize one of these important safety precautions.<\/p>\n
In addition to local Orange County residents, from children to adults, expected participants in the 1.5 mile swim include former Olympians Bruce Furniss (\u201976 Olympics), <\/p>\n
Erich Fischer (\u201892 Olympics), Andrew Strenk (\u201968 Olympics) and John Mykkanen (\u201984 Olympics), as well as Hundeby and 72-year-old Buddy Belshe, current Newport Beach lifeguard and open water master. <\/p>\n
The ocean swim will be followed by a family beach party for participants and their guests. The event has drawn hundreds of spectators and approximately 40 participants each year while raising thousands of dollars to fund the Safer 3 program. In addition to local efforts, the Safer 3 message is also supported nationally by the United States Swim School Association; McDonald\u2019s through the use of tray-liners in Florida and Georgia; and Traffic Builders USA, which is teaming up with Toyota to present the campaign this summer in over 1,500 dealerships. <\/p>\n
Participation in the ocean swim is free; however, donations are appreciated. Participants under the age of 15 must swim with a parent or adult \u201cbuddy.\u201d To participate in the event, or to make a tax-deductible donation, please call the Swim for Life Foundation at 714-227-6000.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
TUSTIN, Calif., Aug. 14. THE Swim for Life Foundation\u2019s fourth-annual ocean swim to raise awareness of water safety measures that are supported by the Orange County Fire Authority will take<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"dois","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[10,4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11835","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-world","category-zzzzzzzzz"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\r\n