Water Safety

Amil: You forget to tell the chevrah, that water safety 101 starts with “Learn to Swim”. Don’t assume all frum kids have gone to Camp and have gained basic swimming skills.

Syag, I don’t understand your point. Do you mean that frum kids are not expected to learn how to swim? Can you explain?

Amil: Not sure how this is even an issue since a few hundred dollars in swimming instruction, if the kids are not at a camp with swimming facilities, is a lot cheaper then taking even the small risk that your kids become a statistic. Eventually, kids will go into the water whether with friends at the beach or a pool. In most cases, even those w/o prior swimming skills manage to stay afloat but there are too many tragedies to even make this a point of discussion. And there are many options for group swimming lessons which are not nearly as costly. The 92nd St. Y offers reasonably priced swim instruction and I’m sure there are other facilities in Brooklyn etc.

Rational – the girls here do a lot of swimming. The local jcc offers seperate classes and free swim times. Swimming only memberships are a fraction of the price of regular memberships. The camps (cheaper day camps as well as expensive sleep aways) offer swim options.
That being said, my comment was directed at GH who often singles out “frum kids” in statements (as above) as if they are more deprived or less cultured then the global group called “kids”. And internet deprivation is one of her battle cries so i just threw it in . But now that we’re friends again i don’t want to belabor this point.