Swimming lessons give access and opportunity

GROWING up in India, Nancy Chopra never had an opportunity to learn how to swim.

When she moved to Australia sixteen years ago, it was unthinkable her two boys wouldn’t learn the crucial skill and soon enough she found herself on the sidelines watching them by the water.

“Whenever I used to go with them to any pools to spend the day, I was just sitting outside the pool and looking at them, enjoying it that way,” Ms Chopra said.

“But I’d always think ‘I wish I could go in the pool and enjoy it too during the hot summer days’.”

By word of mouth, she heard about SwimAware Bendigo at Golden Square Pool, a volunteer run initiative in partnership with Loddon Campaspe Multicultural Services offering free lessons to adults from diverse backgrounds.

Program manager Natalie Kurzke said SwimAware gives people born overseas access to an opportunity often taken for granted by those who grew up in Australia.

“It was about reaching out to those people who were culturally and linguistically diverse who have never had experience in the water, none at all,” she said.

Life Saving Victoria’s Drowning Report 2020/21 revealed CALD people made up 35 per cent of fatal drownings in the state between 2011 and 2021.

To drive down the “frightening” statistic, Ms Kurzke said the SwimAware program is focused on the basics like treading water, floating and kicking.

“It may even just be feeling comfortable in water, and we teach them how they can actually assist to rescue someone,” she said.

“The progress we make with some of these people is just truly amazing. Even their families get there and go ‘oh my goodness’.”

Twenty spots are funded in full by Life Saving Victoria each summer, and Ms Chopra has enrolled herself into the program since 2019.

For her, the safe, inclusive space it provides is what keeps her coming back.

“I never think that I shouldn’t go, I’m always ready to go and have another lesson and learn the skills,” she said.

“It’s at your own pace, there’s no pressure on you and socially it’s beautiful. People are so good and so friendly and there’s no shame in there.

“My goal is I want to go in the deeper end independently and tread the water without any support.

“Hopefully by the end of this season I’ll be able to do that.”

With Ms Chopra now joining her sons in the water at every beach or pool day, Ms Kurzke said the program’s outcomes were real for its participants and rewarding for its teachers.

“It gives me goosebumps to think that we’re making a difference and you can really see it,” she said.

And for anyone hesitant to learn something new in adulthood, Ms Chopra said now is the perfect time.

“In any time of your life, you can learn anything. People should be optimistic in thinking that,” she said. “You just have to have an open mind.”