In conjunction with Adult Learn-to-Swim Month, the Bozeman Masters Swim Club will be offering free swim lessons for adults in April.

This is the second year that the swim club is offering lessons that are specifically tailored for adults with little or no swimming skills. The goal is to save lives, by giving adults the skills they need to be safe and feel more comfortable around water, and make swimming for fitness a viable option for living a healthy lifestyle. The Bozeman lessons are part of the nationwide Adult Learn-to-Swim program, which is funded by the Swimming Saves Lives Foundation.

In its first year, the Bozeman club taught 40 adults how to swim. 35 of the 40 had classified themselves as beginners at the start of the program, including 16 who indicated that they were fearful of the water. By the end, participants were surprised and elated at what they accomplished during their lessons.

Said Sue Harkin, head of Bozeman’s Adult Learn-to-Swim program, “Emotions ran high throughout the lessons, but especially as the lessons ended. Some of our participants were so overcome with emotion that they cried and hugged their instructors. Many expressed what a relief it was to feel safer in and around the water.”

This year, the club is hoping to teach even more adults how to swim. A 3:1 student-to-instructor ratio is strictly enforced, but they have more instructors lined up and Harkin is hopeful that they won’t have to turn anyone away that wants to learn.

Three lesson sessions are being offered. The first session is on Mondays and Wednesdays from April 9 to April 25. The second session is on Tuesdays and Thursdays from April 10 to April 26. All weekday lessons will be held from 5:30 to 6:15 p.m. The third session will consist of an hour-long lesson on Sunday, April 14 and a second hour-long session on Sunday, April 21. Both Sunday lessons begins at 11 a.m. All lessons will be held at the Bozeman Swim Center, adjacent to Bozeman High School on Main Street.

The only eligibility requirement is that you must be at least 18 years old. Advance registration is requested so that we can allocate instructors accordingly. To reserve a spot or learn more about the program, email learntoswim@bozemanmasters.org or call Sue Harkin at 406-600-9296.

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About the Bozeman Masters Swim Club

The Bozeman Masters Swim Club has been an official U.S. Masters Swimming club since 2004. The volunteer-run, nonprofit program welcomes adult swimmers of all ages, abilities, and motivations. The

club’s head coach, Janelle Munson-McGee, is a Level 2 USMS-Certified Masters Coach who caters to the diverse needs of the membership, offering structured, full-body workouts to enhance fitness, core strength, aerobic conditioning, physical endurance, and stroke technique. For more information, visit http://www.bozemanmasters.org/.

About the Swimming Saves Lives Foundation

The Swimming Saves Lives Foundation, the charitable arm of U.S. Masters Swimming, raises awareness about the problem of adult drowning, and is a resource for adult learn-to-swim lesson providers. The foundation solicits charitable contributions and provides grants to programs and instructors that teach adult swim lessons. For more information, go to http://www.usms.org/giving/.