Balcones Woods Blue Wave - 2023 Colin's Hope Pledge Swim

This is the 11th year we have done this fundraiser for Colin’s Hope, a local non-profit organization whose mission is to raise WATER SAFETY awareness to PREVENT CHILDHOOD DROWNING. Drowning is the leading cause of death in children under the age of 5. Find out more about Colin’s Hope at www.colinshope.org.

Special thanks to ALLISON DADY of Realty Austin for her generous sponsorship of our Colin’s Hope Pledge Swim prizes!

Details:

• The Colin’s Hope Pledge Swim will be Thursday, June 8, during all regular practice times, including 6:45 a.m. We will need LAP COUNTERS for all practices.  Sign-up to be a lap counter and we’ll provide the coffee!

• This is a pledge-per-length event. Ask parents, grandparents, and/or friends to sponsor you for the swim. We KNOW you’ll finish the laps!

• Paid pledges of $75.00 or more will earn the swimmer a Colin’s Hope swim cap or water bottle. Colin’s Hope prize packages will also be given to the swimmer who raises the most money and who has the most donors.

• Donate online through the Balcones Woods Blue Wave - Colin's Hope Pledge Swim fundraising page. Be sure to include the name of the child in the 'Donation Message' box so that the swimmer gets credit toward prizes.

• ALL SWIMMERS ARE EXPECTED TO PARTICIPATE.

How to Donate:

• Visit the Balcones Woods Blue Wave - Colin's Hope Pledge Swim donation page.

• Click on the GREEN 'Donate' button.

• A pop-up window will open asking you to login. You can bypass this step and click the 'X' at the top right to close the pop-up window.

• Fill out the 'SECURE DONATION FORM' to donate.

• In the 'Donation Message' box, please include the name of the child so that the swimmer gets credit towards prizes.

Lap Expectations:

Snacks and drinks will be available for swimmers at the end of each session.

The prize for the most PAID pledge money will be $250. Second prize is $100 and third prize is $50. The amount pledged and collected must be AT LEAST TWICE AS MUCH as the prize amount OR THAT PRIZE WILL NOT BE AWARDED.

Did you know that drowning is the #1 cause of death for children ages 1-4 and a leading cause for older children, teens and adults, yet drowning is preventable?

Globally, more than 236,000 people are lost to drowning each year. Annually, the U.S loses an average of 4,000 people of all ages to FATAL, PREVENTABLE drowning. That is nearly 11 people per day!

Last year, Texas alone lost at least 87 children and many adults to fatal, preventable drowning, while 7x as many have survived a non-fatal drowning.

Drowning does not discriminate on any basis- age, race, gender, socioeconomic level or even swimming ability. NO ONE IS DROWN PROOF.  Not Even Me or You. YOU.

Anyone can be a Colin’s Hope Athlete Ambassador and swim or paddle wherever you are.

Not up for swimming or paddling?  Please consider making a donation of any amount to a pledge page to support others.

It's important to me that you know how Colin's Hope uses the funds raised by Athlete Ambassadors:
Colin's Hope educates parents/caregivers and children to be safer around the water all year round through proven programs. Colin's Hope distributes water safety education cards each year, sponsors swim lessons and water safety education lessons, stocks life jacket loaner stations, serves in leadership positions locally, state and nationwide. Colin's Hope provides free evidence-based Water Safety with Colin & Friends curriculum on a new website www.drowningispreventable.org  that allows parents, caregivers, teachers and children FREE access to water safety lessons and videos. Plus, its available in both English and Spanish!

The work that Colin's Hope does ABSOLUTELY saves lives, changes behaviors to be safer around water and prevents drownings. If we continue this work, we CAN END DROWNING.

Together, we will do this in honor of Colin and all of the children lost to a fatal drowning so no family will have to experience what they have experienced. It will take ALL of US to change the culture of water safety. We dream of a day when kids learn about water safety just as they learn not to touch the stove or to wear a seatbelt or to stop, drop and roll. 

Remember that DROWNING IS Fast. Silent. AND Preventable. And please tell your family and friends.

As Colin used to say- Have the Best Day Ever!