Quality never gets old.

We Sell Jewelry

Don Walsh is one of the most knowledgeable and experienced gemologists in the area. He will sit with you and explain everything you need to know about a diamond or colored stone and get you the best deal around. He will work with you to custom design your unique piece of jewelry or you may find it in his vast inventory.

We specialize in unique, one of a kind, pieces of estate jewelry from the Victorian era to modern. Don’s experience and connections in the jewelry industry will leave you confident that you will get exactly what you are looking for at an incredible savings from most jewelry stores. You will always be dealing one on one with the experienced owner in a private office setting with no pressure selling.

We Buy Jewelry

We absent. “We are continuing to closely monitor student absences as we continue to believe that the best way for our students to make progress is to be in school,” Solan said. “We contact fam- ilies when a student is on track to exceed 18 days out for the year particularly if we are not aware of an obvious reason such as a broken bone or significant illness.”

Why sell to DW Gem Services, LLC?

Don is one of the most experienced and respected antique and estate jewelry experts in the country. He has over 37 years of experience and understands that selling your jewelry is a personal and sometimes sentimental experience. He will fully explain the process and make you feel comfortable about selling to his firm.

At DW Gem Services, LLC you can be assured that you will get a fair and honest evaluation of all of your items.

Rich Aroian, ninth grade assistant principal at Southington High School, said the reasons for students being chronically absent are “a lit- tle bit of everything,” including students being sick or struggling with their mental health.

“That’s why we try to take a look at each individual case, boil it down to what actually is the root cause of what’s going on and how can we address the root cause,” Aroian said.

In Southington, according to EdSight, the percentage of chronically absent students last year was 12.9%, with the 2020-21 school year having a percentage of 6.7. Aroian said that “numbers are trending in the wrong direction.”

Aroian and Jennifer Discenza, director of school counseling for grades six through 12, work together on the district-wide truancy committee, which was created during the 2019-20 school year. It’s a community committee, with members representing the police department, the school district, juvenile probation, Wheeler Clinic and more.

“Everyone has their own expertise, so when the conversations with the families start, it gears toward one person or another and if it’s a medical issue or if it’sa mental health issue or just a school refusal on the child, whoever has that expertise would usually chime in and help guide the conversation,” Aroian said.

Aroian added a family meets with the truancy committee after the student violates an attendance support plan that they create with their school’s administrator.

“We try to narrow down exactly what the problem is,” Aroian said. “Is it about getting up in the morning? Is it about a long bus ride?

They’re sick? Is it some social anxiety? Some reason that they don’t want to come to school. What we will do is take those barriers away, so we come up with a plan that the student would agree to. We’ll tell the parent what the plan is, the counselor is in involved and then we’ll make a deal.”

At Casimir Pulaski Elementary School in Meriden, last week, two students’ desks remained empty in Christy Rich’s first grade class as she started a math lesson that incorporates various interactive activities such as stations and partner/group work.

Due to the rigor in the curriculum and how hands-on the lessons are, Rich said students need to be in class to really understand what is being taught.

“Many times students need to be there for the mini lesson, explicit skill instruction and group work in order to understand the strategies and concepts being taught,” Rich said.

“At times it can get confusing for students who have been absent often, as there is a scope and sequence to our curriculum, with skills and content that build upon each other.”

Cheshire Trail Trekkers

Register for Cheshire Trail Trekkers walks via the Cheshire Parks and Recreation Department website. For more information, call 203-2722743 or 203-592-6660.

Saturday, March 4, 11 a.m.

Panthorn Park, 485 Burritt St. in Plantsville (Southington). Burritt Street is a left hand turn off Canal Street (which continues straight from Peck Road in Cheshire). We will meet near the tennis courts. It is our honor to have wildlife biologist Peter Picone from CT DEEP lead us. He authored the official text of this walk for the town. The charming trails have numerous wooden plank walkways and beautiful scenery. Scientist Eric Nelson is expected to attend. Afterwards, we plan to have pizza.

Wednesday, March 15, 2 p.m.

Meriden Linear Trail at the Red Bridge. Travel on Route 68 East from Cheshire Route 10. Go past Diamond Hill Road on the right and go around a bend to the left. See the Red Bridge to the left. Take that left turn. Park across the street in the large lot at Hanover Pond. That’s where we will meet. This walk will be led by Environmental Commissioner Karen Schnitzer.

Saturday, April 1, 11 a.m.

DeDominicus Preserve Loop Trail. This is located on Old Lane Road and is .8 of a mile from the left turn from Route 10 in Cheshire, past the Cheshire Nursery. The turn from Route 10 is at the Cheshire/Hamden line. We are planning to go to a local restaurant nearby following our walk.

Wednesday, April 19, 3 p.m.

Quinnipiac Trails,1325 Cheshire St., located at the Quinnipiac Park Recreation Area. Cheshire scientist Eric Nelson will lead us along with our other noteworthy leader, retired geology professor Charles Dimmick from CSCU.

→

→

→ themselves, that’s a huge thing for kids is knowing how to throw something to somebody and help save them without endangering yourself.”

The Meriden YMCA started offering the free swimming lessons about four weeks ago prior to the grant. So far, she said they have had about 33 participants. The goal for the next session is to have 75 swimmers participate in the DEEP Swim Lessons.

When it comes to getting eligible students, Lewis said the Meriden YMCA has been promoting the program on social media, sending information to local daycares, talking to members when they come through the doors and talking to the school system.

Barbara Glaude, aquatics director at the Southington Community YMCA, said they committed to the program at the end of 2022 and currently have eight families participating in the upcoming spring session, with the goal to get that up to at least 10 families.

“The ability to reach out to these families and be able to say, ‘Hey you don’t have to pay ’ is a huge thing,” Glaude said.

Jay Jaronko, branch executive director, said the Southington-Cheshire YMCA applied for 30 spots over a three session period.

The funding is expected to last for three years, but participating YMCAs have to apply every year to receive the funding. Connecticut YMCAs applied directly to the Greater Waterbury YMCA, which is the fiduciary of the grant from the state to be able to distribute the money to the other YMCAs.

Jim O’Rourke, chief executive officer of the Greater Waterbury YMCA, said his YMCA was working with John Cattelan, vice president of government relations at the Connecticut and Rhode Island Alliance of

YMCAs, when DEEP reached out.

“The Waterbury YMCA worked with DEEP to get the contracts and figure out a way to administer the grants,” O’Rourke said.

Jaronko said one primary way to find the children that qualify for the program is through the school systems.

“If the schools are aware of kids that would benefit from the financial assistance because they are qualified for free or reduced lunch through SNAP benefits, whatever their criteria is, they can write a letter on the kid’s behalf that would get them to qualify,” Jaronko said.

Along with that, Jaronko said the YMCA has been working with the Karen Smith Academy in Southington, which is an alternative high school.

“To see if we can get a couple of high school kids who have never learned how to swim to come to the Y to not only learn how to swim, but hopefully fulfill phys ed credit and perhaps depending on how capable swimmers they become, maybe this is the first step toward job training,” Jaronko said.

Sean Doherty, executive director of the Wallingford Family YMCA, said his Y applied for 140 slots that will be available until June 30. The Wallingford program will kick off on March 6 and will also include North Haven residents. It will run concurrently with the regular swim lessons, with classes added as needed.

“The reason why we have not kicked off our program just yet is because the pool was closed,” Doherty said. “We wanted to wait until the pool was reopened.”

Doherty is anticipating 70 for this session and 70 for the next swim session through the grant. Registration for swim lessons will start Feb. 19 for DEEP Swim Lesson participants.

Along with reaching out to its own membership base to find families that qualify for the free swim lessons, Doherty said the Wallingford YMCA has already connected with the school districts and Youth and Social Services will be another avenue to find eligible residents.

“It’s a must-have as far as kids learning how to swim,” Doherty said.

See Swim, A15

Karen Elizabeth Rodman

CENTERVILLE, MAKaren ElizabethRodman, 83, passed away on Feb 7th,2023 aftera shortillness. Karen wasborn to Raymond August Theodore Anderson and BarbaraMae(Baker)inWaterbury, CT, onSept 13th, 1939.

Karenwas blessedto havegrown upin theHoneypot Glen neighborhood of Cheshire, Connecticut, whereshe madelifelong friendsandcreated alotof memories.

In theearly 1960’s, Karen movedtoCapeCod,where she worked as a Pharmacy TechforCapeCodHospital for 25years.

Karen wasa compassionate and outspoken person unafraidto champion the causesimportant to her.Afteralonganddrawnoutroadtodiagnosiswitha rarecancer knownasCarcinoid Syndrome,she founded and facilitated a local cancersupport group knownas “Polly’s Place.” Through “Polly’s Place” shecame toknow,love andbe lovedbyhundreds of people whom she helped through the most difficultoftimes. Intheearly 1990’s herhusband was diagnosed withAsperger’s syndrome, a condition on the autism spectrum. She founded anew group calledFAAAS (Familiesof Adults Affected by Asperger’sSyndrome)andworked tirelessly toprovide support to thefamilies and friends of those with the syndrome. At the time, support was only available for the parentsof children with this disorder. FAAAS responded to callsfor help fromthousands asfaras Sweden andAustralia, becameinternationallyrecognizedby experts,andheld

Doran G. Anderson

several conferencesattracting speakers and attendees from around the world. Part of her work can be found on the FAAAS website andin herbook, Asperger’s Syndromeand Adults...Is AnyoneListening?

With aneye forcomposition,Karenwasalsoknown forher award-winningphotographs. Those who regularly read theCape Cod Times, willrecognize her name from lettersto the editor of whichshe was a prolific writer.

Karen is survived by her son, Thomas Rodman and his family, aswell as a daughter, Shaun (Callahan) Linde and herfamily. She will also be missed by many cherishedfriends and neighbors. She is predeceased byher latehusband Edward “Ted” Rodman, Jr., herfather Raymond Anderson, her mother Barbara Baker,and her maternal grandmotherLulu Ossinger Bean.

Asmall memorialwillbe held later in theyear at a time and placeTBD. In lieu offlowers, donationscan besent totheMSPCA

(Massachusetts Society for thePreventionofCrueltyto Animals).

Toleaveanonlinecondolenceor memory,please visit www. doanebealameshyannis.com

BURLINGTON, VT - Doran GeneAnderson, aformer long-timeresident of Cheshire, passed away peacefullyonDecember16, 2022 inBurlington, VT,surrounded byloving family members aftera briefillness.DoranwasborninFort Madison,Iowa, onDecember 10, 1927,the only child of ObadiahEugene Snyder andElizabeth JaneSnyder (Caswell).

Doran grew up in Oak Park,Illinois andFort Wayne, Indianaand attendedpublicschoolswhereshe wasrecognized forher quick witand aptitudefor math. Doran attended Lawrence College and the University ofIndiana. Doran marriedHarold W. Anderson, agraduate of BrownUniversity, onJanuary 12,1952, andwent on toraiseafamilyinCheshire, Connecticut.Asherchildren grew,Doranworkedasasenior administrative assistant,tookartandinteriordesign classes and enjoyed beatingfriendsandfamilyat various card games. Doran wasknownforherindependent spirit,determination, and financial acumen. An avidreader, sheenjoyed taking her sonsBrook and Bryanskiinganychanceshe couldtoenjoyquiettimerelaxingina skilodgereading a collectionof novels.She alsoloved spendingtime withfamilyandfriendsatthe OldLymeBeachClubandat CopperValley Clubin Cheshire,CT, whereher sonslearned toswimand playtennis.Takingaspinon the dance floor to tunes by her favorite jazz musician Illinois Jacquetor ather grandson’s wedding at the ageof93wasoneofherfavoritethingstodo.Shewas known forher no-nonsense attitude-“Sayitlikeyousee it” - oftenentertaining her grandchildren and friends. Shewasanaccomplished card player, learningto play poker ata veryyoung age andmasteringthegamesof pinochle andbridge.

Travelwas oneofDoran’s

Dean Wentworth Spencer

CHESHIRE - Dean favorite activities, most notablyherlast triptoPeruat theage of89.Doran wasa devoutsupporterforthehumane treatmentof animals and,also,contributedtothe arts. After her husband passedawayin2015Doran moved toWilliston, Vermont,tobeclosertohertwo sons.Shewas notafanof theVermontwinters,butshe was able toget almost anywhere inher redPontiac Vibe, still driving at the age of 95.

Doran ispredeceased by herhusband HaroldW.Anderson andher youngest sonBryanH.Andersonwho passedaway inOctober 2022.

Doranleaves behindher son BrookD. Andersonand hiswifeLauraB.McNallyof Essex, VT and five grandchildren: TaylorMcNallyAnderson and wife Agne Rapkeviciute (Copenhagen, Denmark); ChristopherMcNally-Anderson andwife Lauren Neller(Long Beach, NY); KylaMcNally-Anderson andher fiancéAaron Fish(Watertown,MA);Jared Anderson (EastNorthport, NY) andTeagan Anderson (South Burlington,VT); brother-in-law Michael Gluse (Chesapeake, VA), nieceShellyBrooks(Chesapeake,VA)andnephewEric Gluse (Columbia, SC).

A Celebration ofLife will be heldat afuture date.In lieuof flowers,donations may be madeto the HumaneSocietyofChittenden County, 142Kindness Court, South Burlington, VT or the FlynnTheatre in Burlington, VT.

W. Spencer passed away on December 3, 2022. Dean was born April 3, 1947, he was the son of the late Muriel and Granville Spencer. A lifelong Cheshire resident, Dean attended Darcy Elementary School, Dodd Junior High, and graduated from Cheshire High School in 1966.

Dean joined the U.S. Navy where he traveled the world on the U.S.S. Yorktown and was most proud of his Vietnam service.

After his military service, Dean was employed at Yale University at the Computer Center until his retirement in 2010 after 40 years.

Dean had a long interest in old clocks and as K1FRD was an avid ham radio operator and a life-long member of the Mattatuck Fife and Drum Band.

He’ll be missed by all who knew him, especially his breakfast waitresses at Paul’s and Grace’s.

There are no calling hours, burial will be at sea.

Donations in Dean’s name can be made to the Shriners Hospital for Children, 516 Carew Street, Springfield, MA 01104.

DellaVecchia Funeral Home, 690 Woodtick Rd., Wolcott, is assisting with arrangements. To leave an online condolence, please visit www.dellavecchiawolcott. com

In cases where a child is absent and then returns to the classroom, Rich has to find time throughout the day to get the student caught up.

“We have to keep the pace of our curriculum moving, but it’s trying to find a couple minutes here, a couple minutes there to really meet with that student so that they can understand those strategies that they did miss in order to complete the assignments that they have to during their work time,” Rich said.

Rich said teacher-family collaboration is essential and represents a team invested in the child’s education.

“We want to work together as closely and as effectively with the parents as possible in order to provide the best education for their child as possible,” she said.

Because high absences may or may not be in the parent’s control, Rich said communicating with parents through ParentSquare, the school app, is something she does. “We want them to know that their student is a valuable part, an integral part of our school community and that when they are not here even for one day, that they are missed,” she added.

Daniel Crispino, director of school leadership for Meriden elementary schools, said it’s hard for teachers when they have to “navigate the lost instruction” when students are out of the classroom for a few days.

Students are considered chronically absent after they have missed 10% or more of the school days and for elementary students, missing many days can make it harder for them to catch up.

“A lot of it is developmental, so if you’re missing certain lessons and units in math, it’s very hard to stay on grade level and not fall behind if you’re missing core content,” Crispino said.

Prior to COVID-19, Crispino said the schools had about 10% of the student population considered chronically absent.

“Now we’re fighting to be under 30%,” Crispino said.

“It’s a challenge, it’s an everyday grind on communicating with families, sharing our policies, offering incentives, reaching out by admin and clerical. We have family school liaisons who are meeting with families on an almost daily basis,” he added. “We used to have monthly meetings on attendance. We now have weekly meetings on attendance.” of SCOW, invited Bourgeois and her students to be part of the non-profit organization. It was then that the Teach Music Program became official, with students from Choate coming to SCOW. Her music school’s name also changed and was then called the Mariachi

Fran Thompson, assistant superintendent for personnel for Wallingford Public Schools, said the district is being proactive when it comes to decreasing the number of students that are considered chronically absent.

At each school, Thompson said there is an attendance committee, which looks at students and their absenteeism, addressing each situation individually.

“The administrator at each building needs a team that would include their counselors, support staff, folks who might have a connection with the family, with the community and we do everything from home visits to holding meetings to provide some support and we are very fortunate here in Wallingford because we have so many outside agencies that are partners with us to help families in need,” Thompson said.

Wallingford also saw an increase in chronically absent students since the pandemic.

According to EdSight, in the 2021-22 school year 20.4% of the student population was chronically absent. The year before, that number was 10%.

“We’re trying to get kids to get back into the routine of being in school,” Thompson said.

“COVID is still out there. For the little ones, RSV was really tough in the fall. It’s been a tough flu season, so there’s big parts of that as well,” he added.

Academy of Connecticut.

“We then realized that we didn’t have much room, and Choate offered to have the lessons there since they had so many private rooms for music lessons,” Bourgeois said.

Gene Wie, instrumental ensembles director at Choate, said the program was brought back in November 2022.

HELP KEEP Cheshire

In order to continue delivery to your home or business, we need to have each resident or business let us know that, by filling out our on-line requester form at myrecordjournal. com/cheshire-requester

Or, you can call us at 203-634-3933 and we can mail you a postage paid postcard to fill out and return. Without the necessary requester information, delivery of your Cheshire Citizen to your home or business, will end.

LOCAL WEEKLY.

“We brought it back and now students have the opportunity to learn an instrument,” he said. “This is important for the student teachers as well because it gives them the skill of teaching an instrument.”

“I want my students to understand how difficult it can be to explain different components in music, especially if the student is a beginner,” Wie added.

Student coordinator Joyce Liu, a sophomore at Choate, said the program has about 15 SCOW students and 10 instructors. “It varies every week depending on who is available, but one thing that has been an amazing experience is seeing the same students come back every week,” she said.

Jenny Lopez, program assistant at SCOW, enrolled in the program when she was 8 years old.

Now, Lopez is 17 and signs the students in for the pro- gram. “I started by playing the violin and it was nice because we would work in groups back then,” she said. “Now, I also take singing lessons.”

Lopez is graduating from Sheehan High School this year and plans to pursue music in college. “I’m not sure which school I’m going to yet, but I want to stay close so that I can stay at SCOW and continue helping out with the program,” she said.

The program is free, and students don’t need any knowledge about the instrument. In addition, instruments are provided to the students.

According to Bourgeois, the program is open to all students in the Wallingford community. “We want to have a variety of students join,” she said.

Students just have to sign up through SCOW. The goal of the program is to help build the mariachi program at

Dave

Record-Journal

SCOW. According to Bourgeois, the mariachi program had to rebuild itself since most of the students graduated during the pandemic. In 2012, 52 students were part of the mariachi, and now only nine students are in the main group, while four are learning.

“I really encourage students outside of SCOW to join and learn an instrument,” Bourgeois said.

celescano@record-journal.com

Anna Hurlbut Cheshire Basketball

At 4-14, the math was clear for Cheshire. The Rams had to win their last two games or the season was over. Cheshire did just that, with the key victory coming Friday against 13-6 Amity. Senior forward Anna Hurlbut had 14 points that night, then added a team-high 9 in Monday’s playoff-clinching win over Career. Hurlbut also played on CHS’s Class LL runner-up girls soccer team.

Zulal Kangal

WILCOX TECH BASKETBALL

The Wildcats head into their regular-season finale this afternoon at 12-7, looking for one final boost in seeding for both the CTC conference tournament and the Class M state tournament. Zulal Kangal is one of the players who’s been doing the heavy lifting for coach Mallorie Michalak. The senior forward had a team-high 13 points last week vs. Abbott Tech and 11 vs. Cheney Tech.

Shaelyn Murphy

Maloney Track

The postseason is go-time for Maloney high jumper Shaelyn Murphy. The reigning outdoor state champ finished second in Friday’s Class L indoor meet with a jump of 5 feet, 2 inches. (Winner Avery Pitts of E.O. Smith also hit for 5-2, but had fewer attempts). Heading into Saturday’s State Open, Murphy is one of seven contenders who are all standing at a season-best 5-2.

Colton Thorpe Southington Wrestling

Southington, ranked No. 11 in the Connecticut Wrestling Online poll, also has a number of state contenders. Competing in Class LL in Trumbull, the Blue Knights will be led by Colton Thorpe. The senior 132-pounder compiled a monster regular season that featured championships at the Timberlane Invitational and the CCC Tournament. Thorpe was the area’s lone conference champ.

Owen Rich

LYMAN HALL TRACK

One of the top area performers at the state class meets this side of Class L 1000-meters champ Bria Benigni of Maloney was Lyman Hall’s Owen Rich. The sophomore was second in Class M in the 55 hurdles and ran on LH’s fourth-place 4x400 relay and seventh-place sprint medley relay. In the hurdles, Rich ran 8.26 seconds in qualifying, then dropped his time to 7.94 in the finals.

Ahmed Hernandez Platt Wrestling

After a 20-win regular season capped by Wednesday’s rivalry win over Maloney, the Platt wrestling team looks for team and individual glory at this weekend’s Class L state tournament in Guilford. One of Platt’s leading contenders is Ahmed Hernandez. The senior captain was 34-4 in the regular season and he placed second in the Central Connecticut Conference at 170 pounds.

Winners will be posted here as well as your next group of nominees.

Carolyn D. Tucker

CHESHIRE-CarolynClark (Davison) Tucker, 89, of Cheshire,passedawayTuesday,January31,2023,ather homesurroundedbyherfamily.Shewasthelovingwifeof EdwinMarshall Tucker.CarolynwasbornJuly14,1933in BadAxe.,Michigan.whileher parents, thelate William Franklinand Virginia(Vary) Davison and family were vacationing.Shegrewupinseveral townsin upstateNew York, includingCortland, Rome,andRochester,where she attended Monroe High

School.from1945-1947.Her Junior andSenior yearsof High School werespent in Newark, NJ, whereshe attended Barringer High School.She attendedBuck-

Obituaries

nell University,graduating in 1955 asan ElementaryEducationmajor.Whilethereshe formed manylong-lasting friendshipsthat shemaintainedintoher80s.Carolyn’s firstteaching jobwas inMt. Healthy, Ohio, where she taughtsecond gradefrom 1955-1956.Inthefallof1956, shejoinedtwo ofhercollege friends whohad beenteachingayearintheNorthHaven, CT,school system.Shewas assignedtothesecondgrade inRidgeRoadSchool,where she taught for several years. On June 28, 1958 Carolyn wasmarried toEdwinMarshall Tucker, a banker, whom shehadmetonablinddatein Septemberthe yearbefore. They were barriedby Carolyn’sfather,aBaptistminister,in Newark,NJ. Aftera lovely honeymoon to Nova Scotia, they settledinto their first little home in Cheshire, CT.Afterthebirthoftheirfirst child,William,andbeforethe birth of their second, Robert in 1961, theymoved across towntoalargerhome,where they stayed for40 years. While raisingher familyshe enjoyedtheflexibilityoftutoringhomebound orhandicappedstudents inthe CheshireSchool systemand did someprivate tutoringas well. As the college years for herboysapproachedCarolyn looked fora steadypart time job and becameOffice Managerinadentist’sofficefrom 1978 to 1995. Carolyn loved traveling with family and friends. Someof herfavorite tripsweretotheCaribbeanIslands,Switzerland andEngland,aswellasAlaskaandthe Southwest. Throughout her life, since herteens, she looked forward to spending time every summer at the familycottage,CherryLodge, in the Thousand Islands. Manygreattimeswerespent therewithfamily,andithasalwaysbeenthecenterofvacation times andcarries many fondmemories. Alongwith her husband, Carolynwas a longtimememberoftheFirst Congregational Church of Cheshire whereshe wasa choir member,Sunday Schoolteacher,andmember of manydifferent committees. Manyof herclosest friendsweremadewithinthe church family.Besides her husband Marshall,Carolyn leaves hersons, WilliamM. Tucker of Chicago, IL and Robert I. Tuckerand his wife Jennifer Heustisof Woodbridge,hergrandsons,Ethan andGeorgeTucker,herbrother,JamesV.DavisonofMadison,WI, herbrother-in-law, RobertBinhammer, hersister-in- law Beverly Davison bothofMadison,WIandnine nieces andnephews. She waspredeceased byher brother AndrewDavison and hersisterAnneBinhammer.A memorialservice incelebrationof Carolyn’slife willbe heldSaturday, February18, 2023at10:00a.m.,inNelson Hall at theElim Park Baptist Home,150CookHillRoadin Cheshire, CT. Burialwill be held privately.The AldersonFord Funeral Home of Cheshirehascareofarrangements.

How the program came to be

Rep. Liz Linehan joined the legislative Water Safety Task Force in 2017, which helped develop a water-less water safety course in 2018.

“So that young kids could learn about water safety in their gym class, even if a pool wasn’t available because we do know that access to swimming is one of the main factors to whether or not you learn how to swim,” Linehan said. “We wanted to be able to create a program that didn’t rely on access to water.”

The Task Force then wanted to make legislation that would create free swimming lessons, but was never appropriated for the funding.

Once COVID-19 hit, Linehan said the need for children to learn how to swim increased.

“Kids weren’t necessarily able to be in school if their schools had pools or if they were doing the water-less water safety course,” Linehan said. “From there, we worked with the Y’s and they said they will absolutely be able to do it if we can just get the appropriation.” im“And the Ys were just a natural partner and so here we are in the beginning of 2023 and we’re kicking it off,” Linehan said. jsimms@record-journal.com

In late 2021, they got the appropriation through DEEP with ARPA funds.

Linehan said that offering this program to families who could not afford swim lessons is telling them that their child’s water safety is a priority.

“This is a life saving measure and we’re going to take care of it for you,” Linehan said.