By Justin Broman, Ocean Rescue Supervisor

Sunny Isles Beach Junior Lifeguard Camp has officially started and is better than ever!!! This year for the first time, our camp has expanded to six weeks, instead of four, due to the high volume of kids that want to participate. Sunny Isles Beach Jr. Lifeguard camp is full of all types
of useful information to learn and is action-packed. Sunny Isles Beach Ocean Rescue lifeguards instruct the program and are a very elite group of lifeguards with a lot of useful beach safety tips and skills to teach the campers (Jr. Guards).

Each camp session is one week long and runs from 9:30 AM - 4:30 PM daily. The Jr. Lifeguards learn everything about being a lifeguard at the beach and working as a team, but most important being safe and having lots of fun. We are always conducting the camp with the highest levels of safety standards and rules in place. We teach the Jr. Guards about all the possible hazards at the beach, ocean conditions and our beach flag system. We talk about rip currents, rules and regulations the lifeguards enforce and emergencies we respond to. The Jr. Lifeguards get to use all the rescue tools we use like rescue boards, buoys, jet skis and binoculars

Each day starts off with kids being on teams and learning how to work together in groups and participating in morning stretching and workouts. The kids understand that being in shape is a very important part of a lifeguard’s job, so they understand why we have them training as well. The lessons and skills they learn are doing mock rescues with buoys and learning how to paddle a rescue surf board out to a (mock) victim. We show them our towers and how lifeguards spot troubled swimmers and the communication tools we use.

The Jr. Lifeguard camp teaches kids about sun safety and the importance of staying hydrated throughout the day. The kids get to go on a field trip to the Miami Seaquarium, and also get to participate in a very exciting Sea Turtle Release and presentation given by Bill Ahern and Selina Mills. The Jr. Lifeguards get to release new turtle hatchlings and get to swim next to them as they make their long journey out to sea with the assistance of our Ocean Rescue team.

On the last day of camp we have competitions, and the kids get certificates and awards for all the events. After all the events are finished, the campers have a new-found confidence and attitude filled with excitement about the experience they have had and the friends they have made. The last part of the camp is the famous initiation. This is were the kids get initiated in successfully completing the camp and go through a lineup of  chocolate syrup, shaving cream and all kinds of sticky stuff…in other words, it’s a total mess!!

The Ocean Rescue crew that is involved in running this camp does a tremendous job providing the campers with a great deal of information, while making the activities incredibly fun. We are grateful for their hard work and dedication. Also, we are honored, and extremely grateful to this year’s sponsor, Invicta Watch Group. Because of their generosity, each camper will receive a free rash guard and gift bag with all types of cool gear, including a towel and visor for sun protection. If you are interested in finding out more about this generous company, please visit their website at www.invictawatch.com.

If you want to find out more about this or other programs/activities offered by the Cultural & Human Services Department, please call us at 305.792.1706. And, when you are visiting our beach, always think safety first…“ALWAYS SWIM NEAR A LIFEGUARD”.