Hey, #SwimFam!
It's Paulana, here. I hope you're having a great Sunday.
I know it's been quite some time since we last spoke and I wanted to be as transparent as possible as to why you haven't heard from me.
Thanks to all your support and donations, this summer, Black People Will Swim was able to launch our first 5-week pilot swim program in Hempstead, Long Island. Our program, which started on Friday, July 30 on Wednesday, Sept. 1 is currently serving over 40 students!
Can you believe that?! That is made possible thanks to you.
With your donations, we were able to do the following:
- Rent a pool in Hempstead, Long Island to teach our swim classes
- Hire and certify new swim instructors (which go for $475+)
- Hire and pay new staff members to help with our operations
- Offer free swim lessons to those who can't afford them
Here's a photo from our Friday, all-girl polliwog swim class on our Instagram taught by our Aquatics Director, Myra. We also have our first student name Brittany, who graduated from our program! Check out her story, here. Feel free to show her some love on her Instagram!
This is why we exist!
As for your donations, we have every intention of honoring them once our swim program is complete and when we close our crowdfunding campaign, which ends in December 2021.
If you have any other questions, comments, or concerns, please feel free to email us at [email protected] and we'll be sure to respond in three to five business days.
I'll be sure to report back with an end-of-summer recap.
Please stay safe and enjoy the rest of your summer!