Marino Swim Central Adaptive Aquatics Certification

In April, 2006, Dan Marino traveled to Tallahassee in support of House Bill 1319 sponsored by Representative Susan Goldstein. The Bill was unanimously passed in both the Florida House of Representatives and the Senate on April 28, 2006. HB 1319 requires certification of swimming instructors working with people with developmental delays and is imperative to the safety of these individuals. The Foundation received funding to develop and implement the instructor training program.

This program is particularly important to the Marinos, as one of the Center’s families lost a child to drowning. Antoine was a very frequent visitor to the Center, having been diagnosed with autism as well as some physical impairment. It was a place he loved to come to, and his family always felt very welcome. Antoine drowned six months after this picture was taken. Antoine is one of many children with disabilities that drown in Florida due to the inaccessibility and unavailability of appropriate swimming programs. It is ironic that although he gained many, many skills at the Center and his family was so proud, the one he didn’t have access to would have made all the difference.

Miami Children's Hospital Dan Marino Center National Aquatic Facility

In 2006, the Dan Marino Foundation funded the construction of an adaptive facility at the Miami Children's Hospital Dan Marino Center to develop a nationally-recognized aquatic program for children with special needs. The pool facility is scheduled for completion at the end of 2007 and will integrate many of the existing services at the Center and throughout the Miami Children's Hospital. The aquatic facility will provide access for children with special needs to participate in both individual and group activities for recreation and increased physical activity outside of a clinical therapy environment

Pediatric programs will include:

1. Aqua Therapy (water-based physical, occupational, and speech-language therapies)

2. Health, Wellness, and Prevention Programs

3. DMC-SMILE (Dan Marino Center Structured Multimodal Interactive Language Enrichment)

4. Swimming lessons and water safety courses geared specifically for special needs children in partnership with Swim Central of Broward County.

5. CAMP DMC, the Center's summer program, will add an aquatic component to its curriculum

6. Sport/Orthopedic Injury Rehabilitation Aquatic Program.

www.specialneedsaquatics.org