Welcome to SF Kids Swim!

April 24, 2024

It’s been incredible to see the early response to our campaign to improve access to community pools for SF families! In just 4 weeks, we’ve grown to 89 people. Thank you for continuing to spread the word! 

Please share the signup form: https://forms.gle/o495uUcAUrbzE4nGA

With our pool access report to discuss, we started by visiting a Recreation and Park Commission Meeting and a Capital Committee session. The commissioners and attending staff seemed receptive to our concerns. Commissioner Kat Anderson and Director of Policy & Public Affairs Sarah Madland were especially attentive. Beverly Ng, Deputy Director of Policy & Public Affairs, has helped schedule a meeting with RecPark staff! We see the meeting as an important first step of many towards making San Francisco a great place for kids to swim!😊

Our current 2024 goals: 

  1. Set up a dialog and good relationship with RecPark staff and park commissions.

  2. Establish better pool hours for working parents. As demonstrated by this spreadsheet we created, accessibility to the SF public pools is very poor for kids. Our 2024 goal is to have at least 1 pool providing working family friendly open hours each day of the week. THIS GOAL INCLUDES SUNDAYS! 

  3. Publish our SF Pools report analysis each quarter.

  4. Help RecPark address the lifeguard shortage.

  5. Develop 2025 goals. To make SF a better place for kids to swim is going to be a process of continuous improvement. What we should be focusing on in 2025 is going to be based on your feedback. Pool temperatures, reopening slides at Hamilton Pool or more swim lessons? We’ll spend the next year thinking about what goals will be most productive!

Please share the text below with your friends in San Francisco, school groups, neighborhood groups. The more parents we have the faster we are going to see SF respond to our needs! Feel free to copy and paste this:

Hi there! Ever found it tough to find pool time or swimming lessons for your kids in San Francisco? You're not alone! Join SF Kids Swim, a parent-led movement dedicated to extending public pool hours for busy families. Let's splash together for better pool access for all SF kids. Sign up now to show your support! Remember, you can choose your level of involvement, from simply sharing your zip code to showing up to a public meeting, and there's no fee associated with this membership. 🏊‍♂️💦

Support better SF pool access (1 min to fill): https://forms.gle/o495uUcAUrbzE4nGA

Meet the current SF Kids Swim Leadership crew:

  • Katka Sabo is a mom of two girls living in Cole Valley. She moved to SF first enchanted with its free-spirited culture (and job opportunities). Originally from Slovakia, Europe, some of her best childhood memories were made during Sunday afternoon family swims and she would wish the same for her kids. Coming from a country where public pools are open 6am-8p almost every day, she couldn't believe how little such a world-class city as SF offers to its citizens in terms of water activities. Disbelief turned to action; SF Kids Swim was born. 

  • Aiko Yoshino is an immigrant and mother residing in San Francisco since 2009. Juggling full-time work and raising her daughter, Aiko is passionate about advocating for equitable access to swim lessons for kids. Recognizing the disproportionate rates of childhood drowning across racial groups (CDC, 2024), she has experienced firsthand the struggles of finding affordable swim lessons and accessing a suitable pool for instruction. A firm believer that swimming is a life-saving skill, and Aiko is dedicated to ensuring every child has the opportunity to learn.

  • Rob Peters is a full-time parent based in San Francisco’s Sunnyside neighborhood. Since 2021, he has been sending his daughter to private swim lessons every week. This not only comes with a significant cost, but this lack of additional reinforcement play in pools means learning is slower. In addition to supporting SF Kids Swim, Rob is also a Girl Scout Troop leader and is involved with SF Urban Riders building and maintaining multi-use trails in the city. If you or your kids are interested in mountain trails within the city, be sure to check that out.

Thanks for joining our newsletter and campaign for better pool access,

The SF Kids Swim Team