Marin’s low-income swimming program expands to adults – Marin Independent Journal

A Marin nonprofit is expanding its free youth swim lessons and pool access programs to include adults.

Jeremy Engman, executive director of the Soma Aquatics Foundation, said existing programs for underprivileged youth in Mill Valley and Larkspur will be expanded to include free classes for adults who never learned to swim or who can’t afford expensive fitness club memberships to access a pool.

“We have so many young swimmers who don’t have traditional access to pools or opportunities to learn to swim,” Engman said. “Our first step is to level the playing field and make sure everyone has access to at least the ability to swim.”

Low-income swimming lessons are held Sundays from 4:30 to 6:00 p.m. at the Mill Valley Community Center and from 1:00 to 2:45 p.m. at Redwood High School in Larkspur. Students are also eligible for free passes to open swim hours and weekday swimming.

The free classes at the Mill Valley Community Center began in 2021, Engman said. This is the first year the program has also offered free classes for adults at the community center.

“It’s open to anyone from all over the county who wants to come,” Engman said, adding that “most of it is people from south Marin.”

In Southern Marin, Engman said, “historically, swimming access has been inaccessible to people who lack the financial means to do so.”

The free classes are led by about 40 volunteers, members of swim teams from area high schools, including Tamalpais, Redwood and Marin Catholic, Branson School and Marin Academy.

Some of these high school students work summers as teachers or lifeguards at week-long swim camps at Tamalpais High School run by Soma Aquatics, the Strawberry Seals swim team, the Tamalpais Union High School District, and Play Marin, a nonprofit recreation organization in Marin City.

“We at Play Marin are grateful for our partnership with Tamalpais High School and Mill Valley Rec for providing their facilities where many of our young people have had the opportunity to receive swim lessons from Soma Aquatics,” said Paul Austin, founder and executive director of Play Marin, in an email.

“It’s unfortunate that here in Marin City we don’t have a swimming pool in our community,” Austin said. “As a community, we deserve the same amenities as the rest of the community here in Marin.”

Engman, a 1998 graduate of Tamalpais High School who has been swimming since he was 5, founded the Soma Aquatics Foundation in 2011. The program began with classes during Tam High’s weeklong summer swim camps until the pandemic ended, when Sunday classes were added.

“I always assumed that if I fell into the water, I would get wet and come out and still be alive,” he said. “But that’s not the case if you can’t swim.”

Lory Gonzales, a third-year student at North Carolina State University, was 12 when her family moved to Marin City and heard about free swim lessons offered by Soma Aquatics. Marin City doesn’t have a low-cost public pool, and Gonzales’ family couldn’t afford to buy her a pool membership at a local health club, she said.

She took her first class and soon found herself drawn to swimming. Soon after, her swim teacher told Gonzales she was ready to join the Strawberry Seals swim team. Soma Aquatics provided her with a scholarship to join the team, Gonzales said.

From there, Gonzales swam on the varsity swim team all the way through Hall Middle School in Larkspur, then on the Tam High swim team for four years. She graduated in 2022.

During her third year at Tam, Gonzales volunteered as a teacher for the free Soma Aquatics classes, and later was promoted to program manager—a position she returned to the summer after returning from college.

“It’s so rewarding to see so many kids have access to the pool,” said Gonzales, 19. “Giving back to the community is so rewarding. I’m forever grateful for this program.”

For Natasha Griffin Kambi, a Marin City mom, the Soma Aquatics program was “an amazing opportunity for my daughter,” she said.