get out, how to float and blow bubbles, then we move to treading water and swimming.”
Advising Burr is Taylor Nanfria, 23, of San Francisco, a former Danville swimmer and coach who swam for UC Berkeley and qualified for the Olympic Trials.
“I thought this idea was awesome,” Nanfria said. “I think everyone should be able to be water-safe, and it’s sad that some kids aren’t able to be. It’s cool that someone like Meghan can have a vision that’s so big. At first I said ‘That’s a huge dream,’ but then ‘Let’s do it, let’s chop away at it.’”
The program focuses on teaching basic water safety skills to children who may never have been near a swimming pool.
“We teach them skills like floating, kicking and then build up from there,” Burr said. “They love it.”
One 11-year-old girl was so frightened of the water that she initially refused to leave the pool’s edge, Burr recalled.
“She didn’t want to go too deep,” she said. “But after the lesson was over, she came up and said ‘I absolutely loved that, I had so much fun.’ ”
“That was a gratifying experience and why I want to do this,” Burr added.
While the program is not designed to be a weeks-long instructional program, Burr nevertheless hopes it may be enough to spark a love of swimming for some of the children.
“Swimming is just a great way to leave behind whatever stresses you’ve been dealing with in your life,” she said. “As a foster kid, your life is stressful … this is a really good way to have a place to come to, to have fun and learn water safety.”
Burr is continuing to reach out to foster care officials in the hope of expanding the program, which is scheduled to add classes in the Diablo Valley. Her hope is that the Foster Fins model can eventually be put into operation easily at a variety of locations.
“I hope that as we expand and get the word out, we’ll have volunteers from a lot of other schools,” she said. “This is a pretty easy idea to make portable and to get into other pools. … We want to make it more available to everybody.”
Burr’s enthusiasm and effort are inspiring, said San Ramon Valley Unified School District spokeswoman Elizabeth Graswich.
“She’s off and running,” she said. “It’s really neat to see a high school student sharing her passion for swimming with other kids — those who may not have the same access to swimming.
“She thought of an area of need where she could help,” Graswich said. “She’s a young girl with great spirit putting all her effort into helping other young people.
The Foster Fins program is free to foster children ages 3 and older, as well as qualified low-income students. The program can provide suits, towels and goggles. Classes will continue until the weather becomes prohibitive. For more information and contact details, go to www.fosterfins.org.