Why Miss Scuba takes At-Risk Children SCUBA Diving

(Dive Travel Business News - October 1, 2011) -- As a California based stunt woman and scuba instructor, Szilvia Gogh has worked on exciting movie sets with actors like Drew Barrymore, boss around LAPD Dive Team Leaders during training and swim with sharks in remote reefs around the world.  Yet one of her favorite activities is the Chance for Children Summer Camp.

A bit of history here. In the early 90's Greg Bonann, a Los Angeles County lifeguard and creator of the world famous television series Baywatch, talked about the concept of having a "Baywatch theme related camp”.  A year after hearing him talk about the idea, Tai Collins a freelance writer for the show, spoke up. She asked Bonann if he was serious about the summer camp and he was.

Collins, with a background in mission work and after school programs, offered to help. They started the Chance For Children Summer Camp for kids who live in poverty and around gang influenced violence.  They focus on kids who could easily choose the wrong path, without productive and creative outlets to help develop and discover their dreams. Their focus became the "at-risk" youth of inner city Los Angeles.

Gangs start recruiting kids as young as 7 years old. Statistics show that as many as fifteen million children nationwide have no place to go after school. These children are more likely to be victims of crime or to participate in bad behavior. We believe that if you give a child something positive to do, they in turn will develop the ability to dream big and learn to create goals in life. Greg's vision was to give these children a chance to experience the beach, fresh air, and a place to run. He wanted them to learn to swim, be water safe, have knowledge of CPR, and have happy memories to hold on to.

About seven years ago, a close friend of Szilvia Gogh's, told her about her volunteer work at the Chance For Children Camp.   Coming from a formal “Eastern Block” Country (Hungary), Gogh often feel the need to share her fortune with those less fortunate and asked Eileen to talk with the camp organizers about bringing SCUBA into their camp.  It was a go.

The following summer Gogh invited her Divemaster and Instructor friends from Ocean Adventures to help ntroduce the 30-40 kids, in the camp, to the underwater world and share our love for the oceans with them.  Gogh also approached PADI to donate towels and scuba toys for the event.

Some of the teenage kids have lived their whole lives in Los Angeles and have never been to the beach, never had a bathing suit and consequently never learned how to swim.   Says Gogh, "The difference between teaching privileged and underprivileged children to scuba dive is something I have always had hard time explaining to someone who never experienced it first hand. To many of the fortunate kids, it is just one of the numerous activities their parents scheduled for the summer.  But for many of the “at-risk” kids, that same one hour of underwater practice is one the best things to have ever happened to them. I have come to realize that “at-risk” children have the ability to be happier and feel more appreciative than their more fortunate counterparts."

The Chance For Children Foundation is dedicated to giving children the opportunity to understand their potential in life. As part of this philosophy, Sylvia and her scuba friends talk with the kids about their lives, telling them stories of amazing adventures and reinforcing the philosophy evoked by Winston Churchill’s famous words “Never, never, never give up!”   A while ago, inspired by this summer camp, Gogh, a jewelery designer, created a “Never Give Up” dog tag necklace.

Over the years the founders of A Chance for Children have watched their dream blossom seeing the lives they have touched and changed firsthand, with a generation of Chance for Children participants now in adulthood.  One of the things Tai and Greg most proud of is that the majority of their volunteers are young people who have come through the program and then return to give something back. They know the powerful impact that this camp can have on a child’s life.

To learn more and find out how to participate, visit A Chance for Children.  Read the full article by Szilvia Gogh at Miss Scuba.

Photo Courtesy: Miss Scuba, Nicci Freeman

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