You started a Non-Profit. Now what?
By: Lisa Cook
Tags: Leadership, Water Safety, Early Childhood Education, Nonprofit, Swimming

So you’ve started a non-profit! So now what?

I have to confess, the amazing accolades and goodwill from the community of people I know after the announcement of AKS has been nothing short of effusive. It’s lovely and encouraging to put something out into the universe and receive only positive feedback. How often does that even happen anymore in today’s world?

For one moment, my twisted sense of humor took over and I thought, “ell… we were a raging success for 48 hours. Let’s shut it down now before anything negative tarnishes our perfect image.”

I’m guessing I’m not the first nor will I be the last to experience a honeymoon period followed closely by the sobering light of day and the ‘oh shit, now what do I do?’ moment. So now what do I do? How will I convince thousands of people from all different facets of business, education, health and fitness, child development and city planning that what I’m attempting to do is not only doable, but is critical as well. That it’s essential to the overall health and well-being of our future generations in this city.

How do I get everyone else to see what I see? I’m already there — I already see it, the same way that when I’m teaching a one year old about the basics of blowing bubbles, I’m already seeing them at 2, 3, 5, 10 years old and what their life will be like in relationship to swimming and beyond. One of the things that I believe has always made my vision unique in the swim instruction world is that I do approach this as a fundamental educational need and I see the patterns and connections of growth and development: how a two year old becomes a five year old becomes a ten year old, and what that child will be doing in the water and out of it.

We have become accustomed to immediate results, immediate access, immediate gratification and as a result our vision for the future has narrowed considerably to something that needs to be seen instantly in order to measure its value.

I can absolutely create a timeline that takes an infant from an underserved community and connects that infant to an adult who is living a fulfilling and successful life BECAUSE of swim lessons.

Does that sound crazy? Way too far-reaching? Are you thinking, “sure Lisa, couldn’t you make that connection about anything?” Well, maybe, but swimming is the world I know. I couldn’t do it about any other sport. Let me offer this up to you as food for thought. When you think about the good life, when you think about success, monetary wealth, affluence, luxury, there is one image that universally comes to mind that embodies this better than any other: the image of a persons’ feet in front of a beautiful body of water. Either a pool or an ocean.

Our connection to water and what it signifies goes much deeper than just ‘let’s get more kids into lessons.’ The investment in our children and the belief that success is attainable for all kids regardless of race, ethnicity or economic status must become a part of our culture and our city’s design. We cannot keep widening the gap between the privileged and the underprivileged. Nothing good will come from that, not now, not ever.

And unlike other sports such as golf, tennis, skiing; other sports that seem often unattainable, elitist, luxurious and expensive to pursue, swimming is a life skill. In fact, swimming is one of, if not the most affordable and attainable activities a person can do. Learning how to swim can change a life in so many ways.

So now I have my work cut out for me. I need to take all that positive energy and create a program that others can connect with; I need them to see what I see, if not entirely, then enough to make it make sense.

So I’ve started a non-profit and I have my work cut out for me in a big way. Stay tuned for what comes next — choosing a board of directors and putting a pitch deck together.

Onward!