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Life they save may be yours

The kids in the Junior Lifeguard Program don't get certified. But they do learn enough to perhaps help keep someone alive.

By PAUL SWIDER
Published June 1, 2005

	[Times photos: Willie J. Allen Jr.]
	Brenna McHenry, 9, tosses the tethered ball during a lifesaving drill. It's just one of the many water safety and lifesaving techniques Brenna is learning with other 9- to 15-year-old students enrolled in the Pinellas County junior lifeguard summer program at Fort De Soto beach.
	Meghan Binge, 11, left, and Amanda Bedinghouse, 12, race for the flag during the Junior Lifeguard Program at Fort De Soto beach.
	Mason Valentine, 10, left, and Brad Engert, 10, share a tasty morsel as they take a break for a snack. The students also play games and study nature.
	Mason wears his protective goggles during a day full of fun and learning. Mason says the program is fun, but "I don't like getting up at 7:30 (a.m.) to be here, though."

There's summer camp and then there's summer camp. Kids at Fort De Soto Park are getting a taste of a lifeguard's life - and liking it, mostly.

"Today, we learned about what lifeguards use to save people," said Brad Engert, 10, of Tierra Verde. "It's fun, but it's a lot of activity. I'm a little tired now."

For a week, groups of 15-20 youngsters 9-15 years old experience the Junior Lifeguard Program, one of dozens around the country that aim to occupy children when they're out of school but also to groom them for possible work as lifeguards.

The program combines aspects of formal training and games to give kids a leg up on becoming a lifeguard but also a good time to go with their new skills. Demand is very high for the program, which is booked solid with a waiting list for this year, park officials said.

"It's not a happy, finger-painting summer camp," said Jim Wilson, the park manager. "This is not babysitting."

On the first day is a swim test to make sure the students are comfortable in the water. Then they go on to subjects like lifesaving, water safety and first aid, with education about the environment and marine life sprinkled in. The program is also offered at Howard Park in Tarpon Springs, the only other county park that has lifeguards.

Wilson stresses that, while students don't come out with certification, they do learn a lot about safety and first aid.

"Parents should know that the life these kids save might be theirs," Wilson said. "There's nothing wrong with training lots of people."

The lessons in beach ecosystems sometimes include impromptu guests. If, during the course of the week, the group finds a sea turtle nest, the instructors will take time to show it to the children and explain how to protect the eggs. Wilson said last year a herd of manatee beached themselves to rest after mating, so the kids got a chance to see manatee up close and out of the water.

"Those things," Wilson said, "you just can't schedule."

But kids are still kids and like to have fun.

"The most fun was the sand fight," said Mason Valentine, 10, of Largo, after a sand-throwing affair with kids and lifeguards alike. "It's fun when you can be free, just run around and stuff. I don't like getting up at 7:30 (a.m.) to be here, though."

Valentine gets up early to pick up his cousin, Adam Shown, 11, of St. Petersburg, who is in his third year in the program.

"I keep coming back because it's fun," he said. "The most fun was diving for sand dollars. They were as big as my head."

Wilson said the county is always looking for lifeguards, although improved recruitment has kept staffs full lately. He emphasized how lifeguards are an important part of public safety throughout the park, not just its 6 miles of beaches. He said training in CPR, the use of defibrillators and other techniques is why lifeguards are even on call to help the fire department under some circumstances.

"There's nothing wrong with working for a supermarket or a fast food place for the summer," he said, "but if put on your resume that you were a first responder, that means something."

The Junior Lifeguard Program exists all over the world in one form or another. Most courses are much more expensive than the county's, which costs $40. Pinellas' is in its sixth year and has had one participant go on to become a lifeguard.

At the end of the week, there is a picnic, and at the end of the summer, a competition for anyone who has been in the program that year. Students also get a souvenir album, including pictures of them participating in the week's activities.

[Last modified June 1, 2005, 00:38:18]