Meet The swim kids team

---

Hello, I'm Ms. Holly. I have been teaching swim lessons to infants and young children for 15yrs. During that time I have fine tuned the Swim Kids program to cater to the specific needs of my Calgary clients. 

I started on this journey when my oldest son was 3yrs old. He was a good kid; smart, and a good listener, but I live in a lake community and wouldn't let him be on the beach without a life jacket. As I was nursing my second son and my 3yr old was overheating while building a sand castle in his life jacket, I felt there had to be a way to keep him safe and keep my sanity.

I enrolled my son in swim lessons. What I understood most clearly was that singing songs and blowing bubbles was not what I wanted my kids to learn. I did my research and found some lessons that were more comprehensive than what was traditionally available in Calgary. There are some excellent programs available in the USA & Australia. I inquired to all of them. I gathered a group of like-minded moms in Calgary that were ready and willing to participate in whatever classes we could arrange. Then came the heart break... None of them would teach my kids in Canada. None! I was sad and disheartened. I gave up. ​​

In my dismay I was telling my story to a friend. He is a fireman for the Calgary Fire Department. As I finished my story he started his. He told me about responding to a call where a young boy had drowned in one of the community lakes. He told me how terrible it was. He spoke of the devastation of the parents. He told me he never wanted to be part of that again. My heart sank remembering how hard I had tried and no one cared about my kids. Then my friend said something that renewed my desire to protect my sons. "Someone has to do something!". That sentence echoed in my mind for the rest of the playdate. That night I told my husband I was going to be the one to "do something". I arranged for myself to get the training I needed in order to teach these valuable life skills. 

​15years later I feel I still teach with that same passion. I have taught over 1500 children how to completely understand water. I teach every child with love and patience. I know how unique they all are. I improve my teaching with each student that I meet. I have the best job in Calgary. I get to meet so many amazing families and I watch as their children learn and grow into confident, competent swimmers. 

Now, a mother of 4 children, I feel I am lucky to have found such a positive teaching tool in my life. I am grateful to all the parents who have trusted me with their children. I am grateful to a loving husband that encourages me to be better and I am extremely grateful to my own children who continually challenge and surprise me.

Hello, I’m Ms Danielle. I began teaching in September 2021, after years of considering this career path. I learned about the Swim Kids program while pregnant with my twin boys, 6 years ago. I knew immediately that I wanted my children to do the course. Not only would it teach my children life saving skills, but this course does not require a 1 to 1 ratio of parent & child, which was a big hurdle having multiples. Once my boys turned 6 months – the earliest possible time they could start – we began our Swim Kids journey. To say it was unbelievable, is an understatement. I fell in love with the program, and the fact that children can learn the skills to be safe in the water at this early age. We continued swimming throughout the years, and once my daughter was born, she was signed up as well. During her lessons, I began asking questions about teaching the program. The idea of no longer sitting at a desk for work and teaching these skills to other children gave me butterflies. I wanted to be a part of this movement, away from singing and blowing bubbles, to teaching real life saving skills. Furthermore, the reduced anxiety I felt as a new mother of twins, was unmatched. To this day, I feel comfortable, I feel no anxiety, I feel no stress when we are at a pool or lake – and that comfort is one I want to provide to other parents like me.

Fast forward through my maternity leave, I made a decision that this was something I needed to do. Then COVID happened. We had to delay my start date a few times due to restrictions, but I kept on the same path. September 2021 rolled around, and I was beyond excited to finally get into the pool. I have loved every moment of teaching the children. I love seeing their faces every day, and their smiles when they can finally say “I did it!”. Our children are the most important thing in the world, and I want families to enjoy swimming with their children as much as I do.

Hello, I am Ms. Sabrina. I began teaching in January 2022 after registering my baby in Swim Kids back in September 2021. I have followed Swim Kids for many years even before I had a child of my own. I knew I wanted to register my babies as soon as they were old enough as I believed this skill was so important. I reached out to Holly once my child was on the waitlist and said I want to teach this. I thought and talked about it every single day until I started, I could not wait to get into the water. There is nothing more rewarding than watching my students master the skills, gain confidence in the water and have them tell me how awesome they are. I am so blessed to wake up every day and be excited to go to work. 

 Hello, I’m Ms. Madeleine. I have a passion for swimming and have been working in aquatics since 2018. During that time, I have been a swimming instructor, swim coach, lifeguard, and a safety ambassador at various facilities. It was when lifeguarding that I first observed swimmers that had recently completed Swim Kid classes. Having seen many children learn to swim, I was amazed by these kids’ capabilities in the water. Ultimately, this led me to Holly's program, and I immediately felt drawn to it. It opened my eyes to the large gap in traditional lessons, and the importance of teaching swimmers the fundamentals of water. These skills allow them to stay safe and happy while swimming. Learning about Swim Kids also brought to mind the many incidents that I have experienced throughout my years in aquatics, and how they could have been avoided. As important as it is to have safety measures in place, it is also essential to give children the tools to be successful when swimming. I feel very fortunate to join the Swim Kids team, and to have a role in teaching life saving skills. It is a joy to see students gain confidence in the water, and to feel that we are making an impact in their lives. I look forward to getting to know each student, their amazing families, and sharing my enthusiasm for the water.

Hello, I’m Ms. Ashley. I’m excited to introduce myself so you know a little bit about me.

I was born and raised in Calgary. I have stuck down south for the most part. I am married and have 3 children, Ellie (2009), Bryn (2011), and Hannah (2016). Currently we live in our forever family home just outside of the city with 3 kids, 2 dogs, 1 cat, 2 bunnies and 7 chickens. This life sure keeps us busy, but we are so blessed to have 3 girls and couldn’t dream of it any other way. I was fortunate enough to stay home raising my daughters for the last 10 years. When Holly approached me with this opportunity, I was thrilled. I am excited to embark on this new adventure that I have been passionate about for so many years.

Growing up both my husband and I spent lots of time around the water. I used to swim on a competitive team and my husband spent lots of time on the lakes in the summer. We knew the majority of our family vacations were going to be spent in pools, lakes or oceans.

When we had kids, being comfortable around water was a high priority. It was important for us to feel the kids were going to be safe while still being able to have fun in the water.

When I was pregnant with my first I started to look into swim lessons more. I was so grateful when I met Holly. Ellie was just over a year old and I was thrilled to sign her up for swim lessons with Holly in September of 2010. Watching Ellie learn and seeing the growth that happens in a few short weeks made me fall in love with the Swim Kids program right away. There was no hesitation when it came to sign my other girls up. Bryn completed the program when she was 14 months old, and Hannah was 8 months old.

Having had several friends and family members go through Swim Kids, we as parents are now confident in our kids skills. This allows us to be able to relax and enjoy our time as we play with the kids in and around the water.

During my training I learned so much about the program that I hadn’t noticed when my girls participated in lessons. I love the Swim Kids program even more and I look forward to meeting and supporting your little ones as they conquer this invaluable life skill.