“You have the power to change you.” – Jamal Hill

L.A. based hometown hero Jamal Hill started swimming in mommy and me swim lessons and fell in love with the sport almost instantly. However, after swimming consistently throughout elementary school, Jamal was diagnosed with Charcot-Marie-Tooth Syndromex, a genetic disease affecting his extremities and causing him to be partially paralyzed for years.

Jamal began swimming again in high school and throughout college, but it wasn’t until age 23 that he let go of the shame he carried over his diagnosis and embraced all that his body could do, setting his sights on the Paralympic Games in Tokyo next year, 2020.

Watch the short doc produced and directed by John Duarte and hear Jamal tell his incredible, inspiring story in his own words.

Swim Up Hill – A short doc on US Paralympic Swimmer, Jamal Hill from John Duarte on Vimeo.

Jamal is a shining example of what the growth mindset looks like in action, and should remind us all just how much we are capable of when we work with persistent, consistent, quality effort, recognizing our weaknesses and applying the necessary change to grow.

Learn more here about our coaching philosophy using the growth mindset.

Molly Huggins

Molly is a member of our creative team, mom of four water-loving babies, and a fierce advocate for CPR training and really early swim instruction.

The post The Inspiring Story of Paralympic Swimmer Jamal Hill appeared first on One with the Water.

When I was a kid, my parents forced me to take swimming lessons, just like the ones I teach today. I despised going to lessons and had to be bribed to stay in the class. I despised even more having to be a part of the swim team at the age of 13. It wasn’t until my senior year of high school when I was being recruited for collegiate swimming that I actually started to think about becoming a semi-professional swimmer. I had been a lifeguard and lifeguard trainer since the age of 16. When I went to a college recruiting trip, I began to see the royal benefits of being a collegiate athlete! I was sold. My coach had me swimming and weight training 25 hours a week.

One summer, I taught kids with Autism and what I now refer to as ‘flawless imperfections.’ At the closing of the summer lessons, I realized that I wanted to do this full-time as a career. That night, I dreamt about having my own swim school. I knew I could do a great job and provide swim coaches like myself the opportunity to teach and create opportunities for others who had the same passion for teaching swimming as I have. The next morning, I started One with the Water®. I sketched out the logo and name that I had dreamt about, programmed the website, and filed with the IRS that same week. Within a week I was fully-insured, renting pool space, and teaching a hand-full of clients. Within the first month, I had another instructor and we were both busy expanding the company. I also completed numerous certification courses in working with kids with special needs and disabilities.

We offer swim programs that cater to a wide range of children and adult learners, including those with disabilities.

One with the Water® is not just about being another swim school. We are about sharing with others our passion of being in the water and living. The peacefulness we gain from swimming is something that has become greater than a life-or-death matter to us. Swimming is our passion. It is an escape from this world and its over-stimulation. Teaching people about our passion and helping them to achieve this peacefulness is our goal. We connect with people on the spiritual level, especially the kids with special needs. We build their confidence and teach them how to relax and become “One with the Water.”

Prior to starting One with the Water®, I volunteered for programs in developing countries that helped empower children and their families to become less reliant on sponsorship and more on their own abilities.

I worked in Bolivia, Venezuela, and Spain with “sponsor-a-child-programs” of Maryknoll (New York) and the Christian Foundation for Children and Aging (Kansas City) that helped to provide an education to children, as well as vitamins, nutritional seminars, and shoes and clothing when necessary. It was an incredible experience where I made life-long friends. I think my experience as a volunteer has helped me to create an organization that is family-oriented and builds a community among all of our clients. I believe it is important for us to interact as positive role-models for each other, for our clients, and especially for the kids. I advertise that it takes a village to teach a child to swim. We seek out sponsors and we are very thankful for each of them! There’s a lot involved in running a non-profit swim school and I can’t and don’t do it by myself. By teaching kids to swim, and sometimes teaching their parents how to teach their kids to swim, we develop this empowerment among the families. We hold classes and social functions to create opportunities for clients to meet each other and share stories about their experiences, and to learn from each other. Presenting education about water safety and swimming–that’s how we empower children and their families.

What do I enjoy most about helping others learn to swim?

I can’t answer this without laughing. There are two things I enjoy most about helping others learn to swim: 1) The moment that my student understands and reaches that point of being “one with the water” is like witnessing an amazing miracle that brings tears to my eyes and is a state of astounding happiness, a breathtaking moment, and 2) well, my office is an outdoor swimming pool.

About One with the Water

One with the Water®, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization strives to be the best swim school in Los Angeles. Typical swim teams & instructors use a one-size-fits-all approach that doesn’t always work for children with unique physical, cognitive, or visual challenges. Our lessons focus on safety, fun, & improved abilities. We introduce all kids to a swim team atmosphere to prepare for more advanced team swimming.

We provide swimming lessons to children and adults, including those diagnosed on the autism spectrum, ADD, ADHD, sensory integration, anxiety, Down and CHARGE syndrome, auditory processing disorders and dyslexia. We provide lessons to Service-Disabled Veterans and athletes with physical disabilities or visual impairments including amputation, cerebral palsy, spina bifida, spinal cord injury, and other disabilities.

We offer swim lessons to those with a desire to improve their swim stroke technique, triathletes looking for the competitive edge in open-water swimming, to people who have never been in the water before and want to learn to swim, and to those of us wanting to take a healthy break from the stress and over-stimulation in the world today.

Join the best swim school in Los Angeles and become…

One with the Water®.

Kenny

Kenny is a baby Bottlenose dolphin, of the genus Tursiops, one of the most common and well-known members of the family Delphinidae, the family of oceanic dolphin. He is very playful and friendly and loves to frequently leap above the water surface. Kenny plays with water toys, enjoys making bubble rings, and plays well with other dolphins or other animals.

The post Inspiration behind One with the Water appeared first on One with the Water.

“I would like to draw your attention to my daughter’s swim school, One with the Water®, a foundation that has dramatically changed my daughter’s life for the better. One with the Water is an organization that has been such a blessing for us providing swimming lessons for children with autism. My daughter, Katherine, has autism. She loves water, and for years desperately wanted to play and swim. However, due to her autism, she had many, many fears about common elements found in pools (different colored tiles, drains, lights, heaters, unlit water) and in natural bodies of water (weeds, seaweed, algae, tiny crabs, moving sand) that prevented her from enjoying something she so badly wanted to do. I can’t tell you how many trips to the pool or beach, where we tried to explain the elements and reassure her of her safety and coax her into the water, ended by going home completely dry because she was too fearful to try. It was frustrating and heart-breaking to see her try so hard for so long (these fears began in 2009 and there was no traumatic experience from a neuro-typical point of view to explain them). And, try she did, asking to go to the pool/ocean repeatedly, bravely confronting those fears. By the end of 2013, she was able to get into the pool a couple of feet—as long as someone was covering the water outlets. This may not sound like much to you, but for us with an autistic child that was a major, hard-won victory.

Early in 2014, I had the great fortune to meet Kenneth Rippetoe, Founder of One with the Water. In short order, Kat began autism swimming lessons with patient and experienced swim coaches that knew what to say and how to soften her fears so well that she was fully in the water by the second lesson. Skip to November 1st, when she competed in her first swim meet—placing 1st in the 200-yard freestyle! This was a standard, main-stream, swim meet; not a special-needs meet. We were all so proud of Kat! More importantly, Kat was proud of herself.

As a result of her hard work and dedication, she has a shot at swimming on the local high school swim team. To be able to participate on her high school swim team next year would be a gift of an entirely different nature, one that I expect (hope, pray) to ease the pain of peer rejection she has been working to overcome. Being on the swim team would give Kat, as a middle school girl whose social skills are impacted by autism, a sense of belonging, a group, a place to be, and perhaps even real friends that she can do things with outside of school. Kat is high functioning enough to understand she isn’t “getting it” but not able to read or analyse interactions rapidly enough to be accepted as a friend. This is painful—if you remember middle school, you understand; autism means she doesn’t often show emotion but she feels things deeply.

One with the Water is approved as an Independent Physical Education provider. Coach Kenneth is a Level 3 Disability Swim Coach, Lifeguard, and trains swimmers for sanctioned US Paralympic competitions. When I mentioned to Coach Kenneth that Kat was deliberately making us late every day to avoid the locker room scene (gym was 1^st hour), they accepted Kat into that program, too. The chaos of the locker room threw her off for the rest of the day; since gym was her first class, this was a huge problem. Her grades started improving immediately after the change and she has been ready on time every morning since. As you can see, I have much for which to thank Kenneth and the coaches at One with the Water. Getting over the fears that kept her glued to one spot to where she is now, alleviating a source of school stress that was detrimental to her education and self-esteem, showing her she can be a winner and opening the door to forming social relationships in High School; all of these improvements in Katherine’s life and future are entirely due to the efforts of the One with the Water program and coaches.

Words fail to express the gratitude I feel for these people. Ours isn’t the only story. I sit by the pool a lot while Kat has her autism swim lessons and see how they work with children—the good they do is obvious. One with the Water’s dedication to helping children with special needs and children whose families have a limited income is, well, a beautiful thing to witness. Please keep this letter in mind when you are deciding what charitable organizations to help. If any organization deserves a grant, it is this one indeed.”

Lisa D. (November 2015)

Kenny

Kenny is a baby Bottlenose dolphin, of the genus Tursiops, one of the most common and well-known members of the family Delphinidae, the family of oceanic dolphin. He is very playful and friendly and loves to frequently leap above the water surface. Kenny plays with water toys, enjoys making bubble rings, and plays well with other dolphins or other animals.

The post Autism Swimming Lessons – A Miracle for Mother and Child appeared first on One with the Water.

One of our swimmers, Tessa, a 15 year-old girl with autism, with about 9 years of swimming experience, recently made her high school swim team and competes in U.S. Paralympics events. As a result of her autism, it is sometimes difficult for her to understand why different races require different pacing. She swims the 400 meter freestyle at the same stroke rate as 50 and 100 meter races, which puts her at a disadvantage. At the June 6, 2015, U.S. Paralympics swim meet held at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, she swam freestyle, breaststroke, backstroke, and butterfly events. In her classification, she placed first in the 100 meter freestyle race!

After training with the Tempo Trainer for just two months Tessa had these wonderful swim results:

• 400m Free – Best time by 15 seconds! And her 1st 50 split was a best time by 4 seconds.
• 100m Free – Best time by 5 seconds!
• 200m Free – First time to swim it, her 1st 50 was a best time by 4 seconds from two days before, and her 100 split was a best time by 8 seconds!
• 50m Back – A best time by 13 seconds!

When providing autism swim lessons, it is important to remember that everything must be done one step at a time and to practice that one step until it is completely mastered; giving a child with autism multiple things to work on, like tempo and proper freestyle pulling, isn’t going to help them learn either skill efficiently and can take up to 4 times longer to master. Working only on stroke rate until the skill is mastered, allows for sufficient processing time.

Abstract concepts like slow, medium and fast are very difficult to understand for most swimmers with autism. We needed a visual teaching method in order to teach the concept of speed and stroke rate. In order to assist this swimmer, we purchased the FINIS, Inc. Tempo Trainer Pro. By using the Tempo Trainer, we showed her the number, 80 for example, a reasonable stroke rate for a 400+ meter event, and let her hear the beep at that rate.

Her dad came up with a way to assist her in understanding how to move her arms to that beep, using a version of the hand slap game. You know the game that one person puts their hands upside down and the other player puts their hands on top? The hands on the bottom have to try to slap the hands on the top before the person moves them. This was quite effective for several reasons. First, when we teach freestyle to kids with special needs, we ask that they give us a “high five” in the water to require their arms to recover above water, avoiding doggie-paddle, and second, it is a very visual way to learn that the hands must move with the beep.

Why the Next 10 Years of Autism Swim Lessons Will Smash the Last 10

Starting at an easy pace of 75 strokes per minute and then increasing the speed in small, easily noticeable increments to 85, and going back and forth between the two, allowed her to learn each pace. Once she mastered that, we increased the pace to 80, 90 and 100 strokes per minute. We labelled each pace in writing, giving her a visual cue. This helped her to understand the slow, medium and fast stroke rate. We will now teach her the appropriate stroke rate for a 50 freestyle (e.g. she needs to be at 110 or higher). For her 400 freestyle, I would like to see her at 95+, but anything above 80 will be sufficient for now. Please be forewarned that we make it fun so hysterical laughing might occur in this exercise; in fact, it should be encouraged.

Once she learned to pace her arm movements in the dryland exercise, we moved her into the water. Putting the Tempo Trainer on her goggles strap next to her ears allowed her to hear the beep while wearing the TTP comfortably.

After several weeks of practice time, she was moving her arms fairly consistently to the beep, in all three speeds. To start in the water, it was easier for her to “high-five” me in a similar fashion as the dry land exercise, and then continuing the hand slapping while doing full strokes. She became a faster swimmer and I had to get out of her way so that she could swim freely at the new tempos she was learning.

We hope that she will carry this new skill into her races, but at least for now, she is swimming in practice at a faster stroke rate than before. She’s already won in our eyes.

About Coach Kenneth

Coach Kenneth Rippetoe loves being in the water and teaching swimming. He is a member of the American Swimming Coach Association, certified as Disability Level 3 & US Masters Level 2 Coach. Kenneth competed in intercollegiate swimming at John Brown University and he is a 1993 All-American, as a member of the 4 x 200 yard Freestyle relay team. He was a 1993 National Qualifier in the 100 yard Backstroke and the 200 yard Individual Medley. As a U.S. Masters swimmer, Kenneth set a FINA Masters World Record in the 4 x 100 short course meters relay, December 2009. Kenneth has 14 U.S. Masters Top Ten swims. He has worked as a swim instructor and lifeguard since 1985.

About ONE WITH THE WATER

We believe that swimming is a life-skill that all children and adults should learn. By learning how to swim, we increase our understanding of the world around us. Swimming also equips us with skills that help us to live better and might potentially save our life at some point. Learning to swim teaches us ways to cope with the challenges that come our way in life. The approach used by One with the Water provides success at any age. We empower swimmers, building their confidence and awareness of the water, teaching them how to swim as quickly as possible

One with the Water is a nationally acclaimed non-profit swim school dedicated to teaching life-changing swimming skills to kids and adults—many of them with disabilities or special needs such as Autism, Asperger’s, ADD, ADHD, sensory integration, anxiety, Down and CHARGE syndrome, auditory processing disorders and dyslexia. OWTW also provides lessons to Service-Disabled Veterans and athletes of the U.S. Paralympics and U.S. Special Olympics. OWTW has been featured on the Sundance Channel and is a preferred charity for Train-4-Autism. More information can be found at http://onewiththewater.org. Donations are always welcome and greatly appreciated. Please contact us at 323-364-Swim (7946) to find out more about us.

About FINIS, INC.

John Mix and Olympic Gold Medal swimmer Pablo Morales founded FINIS, Inc. in 1993 with a mission to simplify swimming for athletes, coaches, beginners and lifelong swimmers around the world. Today, FINIS, Inc. fulfills that mission through technical innovation, high quality products and a commitment to education. FINIS, Inc. products are currently available in over 80 countries. With a focus on innovation and the fine details of swimming, FINIS, Inc. will continue to develop products that help more people enjoy the water.

The FINIS, Inc. Tempo Trainer Pro

Develop consistency and avoid lulls with a personal pace coach, the Tempo Trainer Pro. The small, waterproof device easily secures under a swimmer’s cap or clips onto the goggle strap and transmits an audible tempo beep. Athletes use the beep to train smarter and discover their perfect pace. Now with the option to replace the battery, the Tempo Trainer Pro will last multiple lifetimes. The advanced unit also has a new Sync button and a new mode in strokes/strides per minute for increased functionality. The Tempo Trainer Pro includes a clip for dry land exercise or clipping onto the goggle straps.

Read this article on the FINIS website.

Kenny

Kenny is a baby Bottlenose dolphin, of the genus Tursiops, one of the most common and well-known members of the family Delphinidae, the family of oceanic dolphin. He is very playful and friendly and loves to frequently leap above the water surface. Kenny plays with water toys, enjoys making bubble rings, and plays well with other dolphins or other animals.

The post Why Autism Swim Lessons are Cuter Than a Kitten appeared first on One with the Water.

Press Release – Swim Lessons For Handicapped and Special Needs Kids in Los Angeles

Benny Sperber-Compean, who has autism, swims with Kenneth Rippetoe, founder of One with the Water®, in the Palisades High School Maggie Gilbert Aquatic Center.

MAY 9, 2013 | BY SUE PASCOE, STAFF WRITER
PACIFIC PALISADES POST

The smile on 18-year-old Benny’s face lit up an already bright day in the teaching pool at the Palisades High aquatics center as his instructor held his arms and the two navigated the water.

Sperber-Compean, who is in his third year at Pali, has autism, a sensory processing disorder and a form of catatonia, which causes him to occasionally hold himself in a rigid position. He is non-verbal, meaning that he communicates with sounds and motions, not words. He is currently taking handicapped swimming lessons from Kenneth Rippetoe, who founded One with the Water®, a nonprofit that offers swimming lessons for the disabled.

Waiting for his handicapped student was a second One with the Water® instructor Ben Odell, who attended St. Matthew’s, Loyola High and Harvard University. While at Loyola, he was a CIF champion and All-American, and also swam in college.

“Some autistic children perform repetitive motions, which seems to sooth them,” said Odell, who met Rippetoe at a master’s swim practice in Los Angeles. “In swimming, there is a rhythm and repetitive movements and autistic children really seem to respond to the water.”

Odell said the other aspect of swim lessons for children with special needs is “there is a sense of play, freedom and independence.”

Benny Sperber-Compean, who has autism (non-verbal), swims with Kenneth Rippetoe, founder of One with the Water®, and Coach Ben Odell, in the Palisades High School Maggie Gilbert Aquatic Center.

Benny’s mother, Rebecca Sperber, who has a general therapy practice, was at poolside. Although Benny had taken swimming lessons through another agency, she made a switch a month ago. “He had been at the same level for two years,” she said. “He trusted Kenneth right away and he’s trying different things-he even put his head under the water.”

Benny Sperber-Compean, who has autism (non-verbal), swims with Kenneth Rippetoe, founder of One with the Water®, and Coach Ben Odell, in the Palisades High School Maggie Gilbert Aquatic Center.

As she watched, Rippetoe held Sperber-Compean under the armpits and then positioned him on his back. The teen stopped smiling, but once Rippetoe began towing him backwards, his happy face returned.

Sperber explained that one problem encountered by parents who have children who were diagnosed with autism in the early 1990s is lack of opportunities. “When they get this big and have severe autism, teachers have low expectations.”

Rippetoe, who has a master’s degree in business administration and a bachelor of science in mechanical engineering, is certified by the American Swimming Coach Association for Disability Level 3, gently helped Sperber-Compean roll over in the water and then showed him how to put his hands on the side of the pool and straighten his arms to help him push up.

When his hour lesson ended, Sperber-Compean started to exit the pool, but then turned around and went back into the water. After several minutes, he allowed Rippetoe to steer him back to the steps and he eventually exited the water.

Jerry Huang, a 15 year old Palisades High student, who has muscular dystrophy, swims with Coach Ben Odell.

Jerry Huang, 15, who prior to his lesson sped around in his wheelchair, was next. He has muscular dystrophy and, in the pool, he was working on pulling his left arm out of the water while swimming the freestyle.

“This program is really awesome for kids with disabilities,” said mom Tina. “It’s hard for people in a wheelchair to get cardio, so swimming is a great exercise.”

Jerry Huang, a 15 year old Palisades High student, who has muscular dystrophy, swims with Coach Ben Odell.

One with the Water® offers individualized instruction for children and adults who have ADD and ADHD; anxiety; auditory processing disorders; autism; Down and CHARGE syndromes; amputation; cerebral palsy; spina bifida; spinal cord injuries and obesity.

“We rely on donations to provide financial assistance to families who need lessons but can’t afford them,” said Rippetoe, who grew up in Texas and moved to Los Angeles in 2006. He worked as an English/Spanish translator for Manatt Phelps & Phillips for two years before becoming a mechanical engineer at the VA in Brentwood. He started One with the Water® in 2011. “I love it,” Rippetoe said. “When Benny looks in my eyes, I can tell he’s there-they look right into my soul-it’s a spiritual level. He’s super smart and in the moment.”

Jerry Huang, a 15 year old Palisades High student, who has muscular dystrophy, swims with Coach Ben Odell.

© 2013 Pacific Palisades Post “Palisadian Post”, Pacific Palisades, CA 90272
Visit: OneWithTheWater.org

Swim Lessons at The Santa Monica Swim Center

Call us to get updated on our schedule for swim lessons for handicapped kids in LA and reserve your spot today!

323-364-7946

The Santa Monica Swim Center is located at:

Santa Monica Swim Center
2225 16th Street
Santa Monica, CA 90405

[tb_google_map address=”2225 16th Street, Santa Monica, California”]

Visit this page for more information about our special needs swim lessons.

Kenny

Kenny is a baby Bottlenose dolphin, of the genus Tursiops, one of the most common and well-known members of the family Delphinidae, the family of oceanic dolphin. He is very playful and friendly and loves to frequently leap above the water surface. Kenny plays with water toys, enjoys making bubble rings, and plays well with other dolphins or other animals.

The post Swim Lessons for Handicapped Kids in Los Angeles appeared first on One with the Water.

During the lesson, she continued to tell me that she wasn’t ready, although her body physically was not only ready, but the perfect combination of strength, flexibility and buoyancy to make her comparable (to scale) to Michael Phelps’ dimensions – she was built to swim!

As she was laying on her back, floating better (she was UNSINKABLE) than any other client I’ve ever encountered, she yelled, “I HATE MYSELF!”

It was at that moment that I realized I wouldn’t be able to teach her to swim until we worked on that aspect of her mental processing. Thankfully, I completed my SoulBlazing Life Coaching certification several months ago and have decades of experience coaching individuals no matter their age or abilities. At that moment I picked her up and hugged her, just held her in my arms in the water like the small ten-year old she is.

After working through the mental block, we spent 5 hours in 3 days, developing her swimming techniques. I was honoured to have had the opportunity to work with her and when I left her at the pool, she was swimming breaststroke, backstroke – both elementary and competitive backstroke, and was working on her freestyle, with no assistance.

This little Push-Girl was the perfect example of our mission and vision – helping others to become One with the Water. Sometimes, as coaches, we are required to patiently help you work through your fears in order to help you achieve your swimming goals.

And as my coaches always told me, it’s 90% mental, 10% physical, plus a lot of hard work! But never give up, our coaches will help you in getting past your fears in order to swim.

Kenny

Kenny is a baby Bottlenose dolphin, of the genus Tursiops, one of the most common and well-known members of the family Delphinidae, the family of oceanic dolphin. He is very playful and friendly and loves to frequently leap above the water surface. Kenny plays with water toys, enjoys making bubble rings, and plays well with other dolphins or other animals.

The post Getting Past Your Fears in Order to Swim appeared first on One with the Water.

Community Impact and Outreach through the Combined Federal Campaign

30 April 2014 – Los Angeles – One with the Water, a non-profit swim school providing life-changing swimming lessons to children and adults, including those with special needs, received news today of acceptance into the Federal employee donation program – the Combined Federal Campaign, for both Southern California and Arizona.

Congratulations! Your application to participate in the 2014 Combined Federal Campaign of Southern California has been approved by the Local Federal Coordinating Committee (LFCC). Thank you for taking the time and making the effort to make your charity available to the federal donors in our area.
Charlie Carey
Director, Socal CFC

The Local Federal Coordinating Committee (LFCC) of the Arizona Combined Federal Campaign (CFC) has ACCEPTED your organization’s application for participation in the 2014 CFC.  Thank you for applying to participate in the Arizona Combined Federal Campaign.
Lt Col Donald Bohney, USAF
LFCC Chair
Arizona CFC

Combined Federal Campaign Participant

The mission of the Combined Federal Campaign CFC is to promote and support philanthropy through a program that is employee focused, cost-efficient, and effective in providing all federal employees the opportunity to improve the quality of life for all.

One with the Water swimming programs heal children and adults, including Service-Disabled Veterans, by providing compassionate swimming lessons to those with physical and psychological disabilities and terminal illnesses.

To teach anyone to swim. Specializing in children with unique physical challenges, cognitive or visual challenges, Autism Spectrum, Down and Charge syndrome, cerebral palsy and spinal Bifida to name a few. Scholarships are available to students who cannot afford to pay for lessons.

Website: http://onewiththewater.org/
Phone: 323-364-Swim (7946)
Rate: 9.0 %
EIN: 45-3172555
Taxonomy Codes: O Youth Development, E Health Care, N Recreation & Sports

Our Impact – Individuals and Communities

One with the Water®’s approach to swimming lessons goes beyond individual capacity building to include investments in partnerships – local and national. By working closely with dedicated community members such as early childhood educators, teachers, and staff from other local therapy organizations, One with the Water builds strong and lasting relationships within the local communities to ensure long-term sustainability of our work.

When designing Community Impact and Outreach programs, One with the Water completes a thorough assessment to understand both the needs and assets of the community. One with the Water meets the needs of any ethnic or religious group. We are highly sensitive toward our very diverse community. It is our top priority and highest goal to reach as many people as possible who would not otherwise be able to afford swimming lessons and give them the life-skill of swimming. Swimming is not only the most healthy form of exercise, but it is also the most affordable and accessible form of exercise in the world.

By integrating cultures, each program leverages community resources in consultation with expert educators, local partners, and community members, including parents and children.

One with the Water is highly sensitive toward a very diverse community.

Our programs:

• Foster the physical, mental, and social development of children to teach important values and life skills, especially the life-skill of swimming;
• Educate and mobilize communities around health and disease and prevention and care;
• Teach conflict resolution and peace building skills. Participation in regular activities facilitates the healing of communities and reintegration of children affected by conflicts; and
• Create change and have a sustainable impact. We work in partnership with local organizations to build community infrastructure through the engagement of local staff and volunteers.

One with the Water’s Swimming Lesson Programs incorporate a methodology that uses swimming as a tool for learning in four areas: education, health, conflict resolution, and community development.

One with the Water offers Corporate Community Outreach with Added Value Corporate Sponsorships

One with the Water believes in the power of human potential. We are looking for corporations that seek to leverage the size and reach of their brands to effect positive long-term changes that empower and support communities like One with the Water.

Through the One with the Water Corporate Sponsorship Program, your company can aim to deliver focused areas of impact through innovation, partnership, advocacy, and movement making, with a stable source of funding to allow for a portfolio of innovation to scale and flourish. One with the Water has partnered with CoachArt and Serve the Warrior to provide free swimming lessons to young patients with chronic illnesses and their siblings, and to Service-Disabled Veterans and their family members.

To add value to your sponsorship, One with the Water will:

• Include your company’s information in our Monthly Newsletter – “Between the Lane Lines” – to our 12,000+ members
• Publish your company’s information and logo on our website
• Teach our Members about your company and its wonderful community service

You can start today and we will tell our members about your company and all of the wonderful things you accomplish through community service – a win-win for everyone!

Contact us today to start your Leave a Message Here.

It’s as easy as clicking here to start your sponsorship program today!

Please consider a tax-deductible donation to assist us

One with the Water® is proud to be listed as a legitimate 501(c)(3) non-profit with GuideStar Exchange Gold participation level, a symbol of transparency and accountability provided by GuideStar, the premier source of nonprofit information. Visit our GuideStar page for more information.

Grants and donations to One with the Water® pay exclusively for pool space, insurance, and instruction for Veterans, children, and families with limited financial means. And, due to the help of supporters like you, we have been able to give out over $75,000 in scholarships to needy students and changed the lives of over 1000 swimmers. Thank you for your support!

Current and Prior Year Sponsors 2014 Sponsors & Donors – Become a Sponsor or Donor Today!

2013  2012  2011

Kenny

Kenny is a baby Bottlenose dolphin, of the genus Tursiops, one of the most common and well-known members of the family Delphinidae, the family of oceanic dolphin. He is very playful and friendly and loves to frequently leap above the water surface. Kenny plays with water toys, enjoys making bubble rings, and plays well with other dolphins or other animals.

The post Community Impact and Outreach through the Combined Federal Campaign appeared first on One with the Water.

We have worked with many special needs students and provide a custom disabled swim program for individuals including those diagnosed on the autism spectrum, ADD, ADHD, sensory integration, anxiety, Down and CHARGE syndrome, auditory processing disorders and dyslexia. We also provide swimming lessons to service-disabled Veterans and athletes with disabilities such as amputation, cerebral palsy, spina bifida, spinal cord injury and other disabilities.

Our disabled swimming program focuses on identifying the potential of the disabled swimmer and their ability level in order to provide the best opportunities for swim sports development. We work hard to develop a customized disabled swimming program to provide special needs swimming lessons for each individual and set goals that are achievable and realistic. Our disabled swimming program gives disabled swimmers the opportunity to compete in disability-specific events while improving their overall motor coordination.

Swimming With A Disability

One with the Water®’s adaptive sports program provides customized swim training programs for individuals with special needs such as a physical disability or visual impairment. Swimming with a disability can be challenging but also incredibly rewarding as competitive swimming with a disability can provide not only physical health benefits but also instill confidence, focus and determination in the swimmer.

Competitive Swimming with a Disability

Competitive swimming with a disability is a sport that is not only officially recognized at the Summer Paralympic Games, but at disabled sports competitions throughout the world. The sport is governed by the International Paralympic Committee.

Disabled swimmers who wish to compete are classified and grouped into sport classes by their physical impairment and the degree of activity limitation resulting from the impairment. There are ten different sport classes for disabled swimmers numbered 1-10. A lower number indicates a more severe activity limitation than a higher number. Using this classification system athletes with different impairments can compete against each other as the level of impairment on swim performance is at a similar level.

One with the Water®, as featured in the Sundance Channel’s TV Show Push Girls, is proud to coach swimmers interested in participating and training for sanctioned competitions. We provide year-round training for athletes from beginner to professional. This program is designed for persons with mental or physical challenges, what we call “flawless imperfections.” Designed to help swimmers learn and improve skills, maintain and increase physical fitness, achieve success and receive recognition through competition, and experience self-actualization in an aquatics environment.

Competitive Swimming Sport Classes For Disabled Swimming

Sport Class 1: Swimmers in this sport class have a significant loss of muscle power or control in their legs, arms and hands. Some athletes also have limited trunk control, as it may occur with tetraplegia. These impairments may be caused by spinal-cord injuries or polio. Swimmers in this class usually use a wheelchair in daily life.

Sport Class 2: Swimmers in this sport class are able to use their arms with no use of their hands, legs or trunk or have severe coordination problems in four limbs. Athletes in this sport class mostly only compete in backstroke events.

Sport Class 3: This sport class includes athletes with amputations of all four limbs. Swimmers with reasonable arm strokes but no use of their legs or trunk and swimmers with severe coordination problems in all limbs are also included in this sport class.

Sport Class 4: Swimmers who can use their arms and have minimal weakness in their hands, but cannot use their trunk or legs. Athletes with amputations of three limbs also swim in this sport class.

Sport Class 5: Swimmers with short stature and an additional impairment, with loss of control over one side of their body (hemiplegia) or with paraplegia compete in this sport class.

Sport Class 6: This sport class includes swimmers with short stature, amputations of both arms or moderate coordination problems on one side of their body.

Sport Class 7: This profile is designated for athletes with one leg and one arm amputation on opposite sides, double leg amputations or a paralysis of one arm and one leg on the same side. Moreover, swimmers with full control over arms and trunk and some leg function can compete in this class.

Sport Class 8: Swimmers who have lost either both hands or one arm are eligible to compete in this sport class. Also, athletes with severe restrictions in the joints of the lower limbs could compete in this sport class.

Sport Class 9: Athletes in this sport class swim with joint restrictions in one leg, double below-the-knee amputations or an amputation of one leg.

Sport Class 10: This class describes the minimal impairments of eligible swimmers with physical impairment. Eligible impairments would be the loss of a hand or both feet and a significantly limited function of one hip joint.

Sport Class 11-13: Visual Impairment. Swimmers with visual impairment compete in the sport classes 11-13, with 11 meaning a complete or nearly complete loss of sight and 13 describing the minimum eligible visual impairment. Athletes in sport class 11 compete with blackened goggles.

Sport Class 14: Intellectual Impairment. Swimmers with intellectual impairment who also meet the sport-specific criteria compete in sport class 14.

Kenny

Kenny is a baby Bottlenose dolphin, of the genus Tursiops, one of the most common and well-known members of the family Delphinidae, the family of oceanic dolphin. He is very playful and friendly and loves to frequently leap above the water surface. Kenny plays with water toys, enjoys making bubble rings, and plays well with other dolphins or other animals.

The post Special Needs Swim Lessons Los Angeles appeared first on One with the Water.

Benny Sperber-Compean, who has autism, swims with Kenneth Rippetoe, founder of One with the Water®, in the Palisades High School Maggie Gilbert Aquatic Center.

MAY 9, 2013 | BY SUE PASCOE, STAFF WRITER
PACIFIC PALISADES POST

The smile on 18-year-old Benny’s face lit up an already bright day in the teaching pool at the Palisades High aquatics center as his instructor held his arms and the two navigated the water.

Sperber-Compean, who is in his third year at Pali, has autism, a sensory processing disorder and a form of catatonia, which causes him to occasionally hold himself in a rigid position. He is non-verbal, meaning that he communicates with sounds and motions, not words. He is currently taking swimming lessons from Kenneth Rippetoe, who founded One with the Water®, a nonprofit that offers swimming lessons for the disabled.

Waiting for his student was a second One with the Water® instructor Ben Odell, who attended St. Matthew’s, Loyola High and Harvard University. While at Loyola, he was a CIF champion and All-American, and also swam in college.

“Some autistic children perform repetitive motions, which seems to sooth them,” said Odell, who met Rippetoe at a master’s swim practice in Los Angeles. “In swimming, there is a rhythm and repetitive movements and autistic children really seem to respond to the water.”

Odell said the other aspect of swim lessons for children with special needs is “there is a sense of play, freedom and independence.”

Benny Sperber-Compean, who has autism (non-verbal), swims with Kenneth Rippetoe, founder of One with the Water®, and Coach Ben Odell, in the Palisades High School Maggie Gilbert Aquatic Center.

Benny’s mother, Rebecca Sperber, who has a general therapy practice, was at poolside. Although Benny had taken swimming lessons through another agency, she made a switch a month ago. “He had been at the same level for two years,” she said. “He trusted Kenneth right away and he’s trying different things-he even put his head under the water.”

Benny Sperber-Compean, who has autism (non-verbal), swims with Kenneth Rippetoe, founder of One with the Water®, and Coach Ben Odell, in the Palisades High School Maggie Gilbert Aquatic Center.

As she watched, Rippetoe held Sperber-Compean under the armpits and then positioned him on his back. The teen stopped smiling, but once Rippetoe began towing him backwards, his happy face returned.

Sperber explained that one problem encountered by parents who have children who were diagnosed with autism in the early 1990s is lack of opportunities. “When they get this big and have severe autism, teachers have low expectations.”

Rippetoe, who has a master’s degree in business administration and a bachelor of science in mechanical engineering, is certified by the American Swimming Coach Association for Disability Level 3, gently helped Sperber-Compean roll over in the water and then showed him how to put his hands on the side of the pool and straighten his arms to help him push up.

When his hour lesson ended, Sperber-Compean started to exit the pool, but then turned around and went back into the water. After several minutes, he allowed Rippetoe to steer him back to the steps and he eventually exited the water.

Jerry Huang, a 15 year old Palisades High student, who has muscular dystrophy, swims with Coach Ben Odell.

Jerry Huang, 15, who prior to his lesson sped around in his wheelchair, was next. He has muscular dystrophy and, in the pool, he was working on pulling his left arm out of the water while swimming the freestyle.

“This program is really awesome for kids with disabilities,” said mom Tina. “It’s hard for people in a wheelchair to get cardio, so swimming is a great exercise.”

Jerry Huang, a 15 year old Palisades High student, who has muscular dystrophy, swims with Coach Ben Odell.

One with the Water® offers individualized instruction for children and adults who have ADD and ADHD; anxiety; auditory processing disorders; autism; Down and CHARGE syndromes; amputation; cerebral palsy; spina bifida; spinal cord injuries and obesity.

“We rely on donations to provide financial assistance to families who need lessons but can’t afford them,” said Rippetoe, who grew up in Texas and moved to Los Angeles in 2006. He worked as an English/Spanish translator for Manatt Phelps & Phillips for two years before becoming a mechanical engineer at the VA in Brentwood. He started One with the Water® in 2011. “I love it,” Rippetoe said. “When Benny looks in my eyes, I can tell he’s there-they look right into my soul-it’s a spiritual level. He’s super smart and in the moment.”

Jerry Huang, a 15 year old Palisades High student, who has muscular dystrophy, swims with Coach Ben Odell.

© 2013 Pacific Palisades Post “Palisadian Post”, Pacific Palisades, CA 90272
Visit: OneWithTheWater.org

Kenny

Kenny is a baby Bottlenose dolphin, of the genus Tursiops, one of the most common and well-known members of the family Delphinidae, the family of oceanic dolphin. He is very playful and friendly and loves to frequently leap above the water surface. Kenny plays with water toys, enjoys making bubble rings, and plays well with other dolphins or other animals.

The post Swimming Lessons Offered For Handicapped And Special Needs appeared first on One with the Water.

One with the Water® recently completed, with Della Tosin, a design student from Indonesia studying at the Pasadena, California, Art Center College of Design, Project Elle. One with the Water®’s professional participation was that of mentor and swimming expert. Working with Della, One with the Water® assisted her in designing a leg with attached swimwear that would most replicate and assist an amputee swimming in overcoming a lack of balance and gain stability and mechanical advantages of a human leg.

The final design features a support liner and elastic bands sewn into compression fabrics. We created an adjustable air chamber to provide buoyancy for maintaining the streamline position. The “ankle” is flexible to optimize starts and turns! And it comes with an interchangeable fin, depending on the swimmer’s foot size.

Kenny

Kenny is a baby Bottlenose dolphin, of the genus Tursiops, one of the most common and well-known members of the family Delphinidae, the family of oceanic dolphin. He is very playful and friendly and loves to frequently leap above the water surface. Kenny plays with water toys, enjoys making bubble rings, and plays well with other dolphins or other animals.

The post Design Of A Prosthetic Swimming Leg appeared first on One with the Water.