Heading 1
HI, I'M SELENA
IT'S TIME TO TAKE CHARGE OF YOUR FAMILY'S WATER SAFETY
REDUCE YOUR CHILD'S RISK OF DROWNING
& GET BACK TO ENJOYING THE WATER FOR YOURSELF
I SEE YOU MAMA,
WORRIED THE WAY I WAS.
ANXIOUS AROUND THE POOL WITH YOUR LITTLE NON-SWIMMERS.
Running after them anytime they get too close to the edge of the pool.
Spending your summer panicking when you lose track of them for a moment.
Terrified that when you find them they'll be exactly where you were afraid they'd be.
Trying in vain to get into lessons and then when you do seeing very little progress.
Trying to secure the pool knowing that if they want in they WILL get in.
AND YOU HAVE EVERY REASON TO BE AFRAID...
"MORE CHILDREN AGED 1-4 DIE FROM DROWNING THAN ANY OTHER CAUSE EXCEPT BIRTH DEFECTS."
-CDC
BUT THERE IS HOPE.
YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE AFRAID ANYMORE
And you don't have to wait.
I totally get it because before I developed this method I was right where you are.
You desperately want to enjoy the water, you REALLY want water time to be fun but right now it's just anxiety producing and you don't know what to do about it.
The lessons aren't working and all they do is cry...
HI! I'M SELENA...
I teach parents how to keep their children safer by the water.
I'm an acclaimed Water Safety Education Expert, Aquatic Program Developer, and Coach
(Best specialty school in Beverly Park LN 2017) for parents of 2-5 year olds who want to increase safety and gain peace of mind around the water.
I firmly believe I am here to help parents teach their 2-5 year olds how to swim and self-rescue so they can improve safety and gain peace of mind around the water.
So you can fully enjoy the pool, beach, vacation... too without fear.
AND, the way I do it only takes a few weeks!
THIS IS THE BEST WAY TO KEEP YOUR CHILD SAFE
LEARNING TO SWIM IS ASSOCIATED
WITH AN
88% REDUCTION
IN THE RISK OF DROWNING*
HERE IS HOW IT WAS FOR ME AND WHY I HAD TO FIND A BETTER WAY
I HAVE ALWAYS BEEN A COACH AND I HAVE ALWAYS WORKED WITH KIDS.
When I was 14, I started coaching gymnastics,
at 15, I added teaching swimming,
by 16, I was lifeguarding as well. Pool and Beach.
By the age of 19 I was a head coach at the gym, coaching competitive boys, and running a military beach - that saw over five thousand kids a summer - with a full staff to train. I was responsible for the cold water survival training of over five-hundred students a summer - a curriculum I wrote and administered for almost a decade. A year later I also worked as an aquatic specialist coaching police trainees in water safety and aquatic rescue at the local college.
When I left home for university I immediately found several jobs building curriculums for both public and private aquatic centers but after that, the closest I got to the water was vacationing... until I had children...
I WAS AT A COMPLETE LOSS
When my children were 4 and 2 we moved to Los Angeles into a home with an in-ground pool. My son (4), having had a non-fatal drowning experience years earlier, was terrified of the water and my daughter (2) thought she was Ariel.
IT WAS THEN I KNEW I HAD A PROBLEM
My daughter would throw herself into the deep end with no regard for life and my son would cling to me as I tried to make my way over to pull her out to which she would proudly reply "Mama, I swim!"
No baby, you don't, you scare me, was all I could think
WHAT I THOUGHT WAS GOING TO BE A GREAT FAMILY ACTIVITY TURNED INTO A NIGHTMARE.
Despite the gates, the door chimes, and the warnings about going near the pool, anytime they were out of sight for a moment or too quiet my mind went straight to the worst. I spent most of my days worried I would find them at the bottom of the pool.
LUCKILY I HAVE ALWAYS BEEN PRETTY STUBBORN...
It didn't take long before the stress was too much for me and I started to look for a solution. I knew that traditional lessons were not going to work because I had tried everything I knew to get them both swimming already and it wasn't working.
I looked into every method I could find and started researching and learning everything I could about each one. Learning the pros and cons and reading academic journals on development and trauma.
As I researched early childhood development, emotional development, physical development. I realised that these were topics that had not yet been broached when I was teaching. These were subjects, it turns out, that were not incorporated into traditional methods, nor most other fringe methods.
Once I had a plan I tried it. When it didn't seem to be working I moved back into research mode and tried again.
Luckily, I've always been pretty stubborn and I was not going to let this get in the way of my dreams of surfing and snorkeling with my children during our brief time in California.
My love for the water would not be dissuaded.
And then one day it worked!
ONCE I FIGURED IT OUT THE RELIEF WAS INCREDIBLE
I no longer worried if they were out of sight for a moment and I was able to enjoy the water with them!
NOW THERE IS PEACE OF MIND AND A WHOLE LOT OF FUN!
Not only was I able to breathe again around the water but we were able to have the most incredible aquatic adventures with our preschoolers.
Once they knew how to swim it only took about thirty minutes to teach them to use a snorkel and then off we went to the Florida Keys to snorkel in the reef.
From there it has been all kinds of water fun and when A was 4 she learned to surf! Check out the video below!
Since then my stress around the water has just about disappeared.
Now, water time is fun. We can play and interact and though I always have an eye on my babies - even now in their almost teens - I have a calm sense of security knowing that they know their limits and have a healthy respect for the water.
We get to go on adventures and I don't lose sleep if we are camping by a lake or vacationing in a beach walk out.
NOW I HAVE PEACE OF MIND NO MATTER WHERE WE ARE
FUN FACTS ABOUT ME
-
I moved to Dakar, Senegal for two years when my eldest was 9 months old.
-
I ate dinner with a pack of monkeys on safari once and one stole a roll from right out of my hand.
-
I have flown across the Atlantic ocean over 25 times.
-
I lived in sunny Los Angeles, California for four years.
-
I was a Captain in the Canadian military when I "retired".
-
I played flat track roller derby for over four years in two different countries.
-
I trained to be a police officer but realised that sitting in a car for that long was not going to be a good idea for me.
-
I used to weigh 280lbs and have kept off the excess for over a decade.
-
I am the fourth of six children. I have three sisters and two brothers.
-
I have coached people in all walks of life, children, teens, & adults (athletes and non athletes) and this is not my first coaching business but it is where my heart and passion are.
PROFESSIONAL BIO
Selena Willows is an acclaimed Water Safety Education Expert who helps parents improve their family's water safety and gain peace of mind around the water with their pre-schoolers.
Through various coaching services and speaking engagements Selena helps parents of 2-5 year olds keep their children safer around the water and teach them to swim and self-rescue so they can enhance safety and gain peace of mind...and get back to enjoying the water for themselves.
Selena has over 27 years of experience in the field and through her proprietary method has helped thousands of families find calm around the water knowing that their children are at a much diminished risk of drowning.
*Selena is based in Ottawa, Canada but travels to teach and speak.
OUR BUSINESS VALUES
GROWTH
From personal development to learning options for all levels of comfort in the water, we believe that the best way to help our clients is by guiding them as they learn, grow, and help their children develop skills in the water beyond their comfort zone; so, they can improve safety and gain peace of mind.
At Swim to Safety, we commit to maintaining a growth mindset amongst our staff so we can continue to enhance our existing programs, create new ones, and learn from you, your children, and other experts like us.
INTEGRITY
From complete transparency in all we do to practicing what we preach in and out of the water; Integrity in all we do is at the forefront of the way we operate. We believe in open, honest communication with all the people in our lives even when mistakes are made as these can be the best opportunities for growth.
At Swim to Safety, we strive to create quality programs that deliver the results promised & back it up with our guarantees. We only work with clients we know can help and will try our best to redirect those we cannot.
SAFETY & SUPPORT
The goal of all our programs is to change the relationship our clients have with the water, so it becomes a fun experience for the whole family. Through parental education & skills-based learning we aim to reduce drowning rates and increase the safety and security of children around the water.
At Swim to Safety, we aim for you to feel secure and empowered stepping out of your comfort zone to teach your own child. We provide you with all the safety information you need but beyond that we support our clients for life.
Once you are part of the Swim to Safety family, access to the information you need and the support to put it into practice is at your fingertips for life.
We want parents everywhere to know:
YOU ARE CAPABLE
YOU ARE ENOUGH
YOU ARE THE BEST INSTRUCTOR FOR YOUR CHILD BECAUSE;
YOU KNOW THEM BEST
The rest we can teach you
Swim to Me: Your path to an independent swimmer