Posted on 06 January 2020
We are thrilled to support Richmond Aquatic Centre’s SwimMagic sponsored swimming lessons to school age children who would not normally be able to afford them.
With around nearly 100 preventable drownings each year in New Zealand, swimming lessons are vital for teaching water safety to Kiwi kids. The lessons help build self-confidence in those who are nervous around water and educate those who may be a bit too confident and unaware of the dangers. As the main sponsor, NBS has made a commitment of three years of sponsorship, supporting up to 140 children with swimming lessons each year.
Richmond Aquatic Centre’s Administration and Marketing Coordinator Crystal Gaiger says there are some heart-breaking stories. “In some cases, children have moved schools several times in a single year due to difficult circumstances. The lessons provide them with fun and stability, as well as really important safety skills around water,” she says.
“Without the support of NBS and SwimMagic, the initiative wouldn’t be able to happen. We reached out to local businesses like NBS in conjunction with our SwimMagic Swim School to see who would be happy to support the initiative. We really wanted local businesses involved because it’s about locals supporting locals,” she says. “NBS is so big in the community – it’s incredible how much they support – they jumped at the opportunity. We’re very grateful for their amazing generosity.”
The programme reaches out to children in need via charitable organisation Big Brothers Big Sisters and through an application form on the website.