Greater Scranton YMCA Recieves Grant from Step Into Swim

In September, the Greater Scranton YMCA was awarded a grant from Step Into Swim to support scholarships for swim lessons. Step Into Swim is the nationwide drowning prevention initiative of the Pool & Hot Tub Alliance (PHTA) dedicated to creating safe swimmers.

Through this grant award, the Y’s goal is to offer a session of swim lessons, which consists of eight lessons, to families who otherwise may not be able to participate due to cost. Grant funding will provide the YMCA with the capacity to offer participating families a 75 percent subsidy, making them responsible to pay only 25 percent of the swim lesson session fee.

“We are so grateful to Step Into Swim for allowing our YMCA to provide swim lessons to more children in our community,” said Rich Surridge, President & CEO, Greater Scranton YMCA. “We believe all kids should have the opportunity to learn the lifesaving skill of swimming and thanks to this grant award, we will be able to provide lessons to children who may otherwise not be able to participate due to cost.”

To award the lessons, the Greater Scranton YMCA has created a Google Form that interested families can complete. In addition to collecting parent and child information, the form also includes questions about household income and family size to ensure the lessons are being awarded to families in need. The Google Form will open on Wednesday, May 28th and will close when lessons are filled. The form can be accessed here: https://forms.gle/Gt3Er3EG87sjH8nF6.

The four-week swim lesson session will consist of two lessons weekly. The session will begin the week of June 23rd. For more information about the Step Into Swim scholarship swim lessons at the Greater Scranton YMCA, contact Leslie Kopa, Aquatics Director, at lkopa@gsymca.org.