Released: October 27, 2005

Kinsella Students Begin Swim for Life Program
Partners Fund Swimsuits, Instruction, Activities Aimed at Preventing Drownings
Swimsuit Fittings Take Place Friday; Program Launches Monday

(Hartford) – More than 50 students at Hartford’s Kinsella Elementary School will be measured at 1:30 p.m. for free swimsuits tomorrow in preparation for Monday’s launch of a new Swim for Life program aimed at urban students who have little swimming experience.

Funded by the SBM Charitable Foundation, this seven-week program will transport the students from Kinsella to The YMCA of Greater Hartford’s pool at The Learning Corridor each Monday and Wednesday.  The swimming instruction, which runs from 3 to 5 p.m., is based on the YMCA’s national Everybody in the Pool program.  The students will receive a copy of Froggy Learns to Swim, a book about a frog who overcomes his fears of the water and learns to swim, at the first class on Monday.

The partners were brought together by the SBM Charitable Foundation and the Capitol Region Education Council, who submitted the request for funding in July.  The program is run by the YMCA Urban Initiatives Program.

“After reading multiple articles over the summer about children from Hartford who had drowned because they didn’t know how to swim, I knew we had to help,” said Sheila Flanagan, executive director of the SBM Charitable Foundation.  “We hope that this pilot program will grow to share water safety and physical fitness with many more children in Hartford.”

About CREC
CREC is a non-profit, regional educational service center serving 35 Greater Hartford public school districts.  It was founded in 1966 by local school districts working together to solve common problems.  Now entering its 40th year, CREC administers more than 120 programs and services spanning the entire educational spectrum.  For more information about CREC, visit www.crec.org.

About SBM Charitable Foundation
The SBM Charitable Foundation, Inc., was established in 2000 by Connecticut Bancshares, Inc., the parent company of the former Savings Bank of Manchester in Manchester, Connecticut. The Foundation is committed to improving the life of residents in Hartford, Tolland and Windham counties.  Priorities for funding include health, human services, education, housing and the arts.  For more information, visit www.sbmfoundation.org.

About The YMCA of Greater Hartford
The YMCA of Greater Hartford is a non-profit 501 (c) (3) charitable organization consisting of 10 branches, which served more than 95,000 people in 33 towns of the Capital Region in 2004.  YMCA programs put the values of caring, honesty, respect and responsibility into practice to build healthy spirit, mind and body for all participants.