Edu Foundation and The Children’s Trust work toward a community with zero child drownings

The loss of a child is a pain no family should ever endure. When that loss comes from drowning, a tragedy that is almost always preventable, the grief is compounded by the haunting question of what if.

In 2021, my family lost our 15-month-old son, Eduardo. His absence changed our lives forever, and the only way forward was to honor his memory by helping ensure other families never experience the same heartbreak.

That commitment became the Edu Foundation, created to teach children how to enjoy water safely and responsibly. What began as a deeply personal mission quickly grew into a community effort. We saw how many children lacked access to basic swimming instruction, and we knew we needed to do more.

When the opportunity arose to join the Zero Drownings Miami-Dade (ZDMD) initiative as a funding partner, we embraced it wholeheartedly. With the leadership and support of The Children’s Trust of Miami-Dade, we realized we could reach more families, remove more barriers and protect more children.

The urgency could not be clearer. In Miami-Dade County, drowning is the No. 1 cause of accidental death for children ages 1 to 14. Nationally, it is the leading cause of death for children ages 1 to 4 and the second-leading cause for ages 5 to 14. In 2022, Florida had the highest unintentional drowning death rate in the nation among children from birth to age 9. These are not just statistics. These are preventable tragedies.

The Children’s Trust, created by voters in 2002 to improve the lives of children and families, has long recognized that water safety is not optional in a community surrounded by water. That is why Zero Drownings Miami-Dade was launched in 2024: making it the first comprehensive, countywide drowning prevention effort focused on young children.

Led by The Trust in partnership with Miami-Dade County, Miami-Dade County Public Schools, The Miami Foundation, United Way Miami, the American Red Cross, along with other dedicated funding partners, the initiative removes the barriers that have historically kept families from accessing swim lessons: cost, transportation, and lack of awareness of the importance of water safety skills.

Through ZDMD, young children, most between the ages of 4-7, and older for certain children with disabilities, receive 10 free 30-minute water safety swim lessons to potentially save their lives.

These lessons take place during coordinated daytime field trips from schools, child care centers and Summer camps, using an American Red Cross-certified curriculum, small class sizes, and trained instructors at county, municipal and private pools. This approach ensures that children who might otherwise never receive swimming instruction gain the skills they need to be safe around water.

The impact is already significant. Since 2024, Zero Drownings Miami-Dade has served more than 4,300 children across 113 schools and preschools, delivering nearly 31,300 swim lessons and obtaining 26,800 water safety swim skills. These numbers reflect not only the scale of the need but the power of coordinated community action. At scale, the goal is to reach 20,000 young children annually, providing layers of protection far beyond what existed before.

The initiative’s reach also extends beyond the pool. Parents and caregivers across the county can access a free online American Red Cross water safety course in English, Spanish, and Haitian Creole at the new www.ZeroDrowningsMiamiDade.org website. The site also offers a searchable database of after-school and Summer swim programs and essential drowning prevention information.

The Children’s Trust has always championed the idea that children must be safe to thrive. Swimming and water safety are not extracurricular activities in South Florida — they are foundational life skills. A child cannot grow academically, socially, or emotionally if they are not protected from preventable dangers.

What would it mean for Miami-Dade to have zero child drownings? The Zero Drownings Miami-Dade initiative not only poses the question, but it also offers a roadmap to achieve it. With leadership from The Children’s Trust, the Edu Foundation, committed partners across the community, and engaged families, “Join the Zero Challenge” is not an aspirational slogan. It is a goal within reach.

For families like mine, this work is deeply personal. Edu’s legacy lives in every child who learns to swim, every parent who gains knowledge, and every life that is protected. Together, we can build a community where no child’s story ends in preventable tragedy.

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Olga Londoño is a mother of three whose life and work are deeply shaped by the memory of her son, Edu. After losing him, she founded the Edu Foundation, dedicated to preventing childhood drowning by providing free swimming lessons and water-safety education. She also created Eledu Home, a nonprofit home goods brand that donates 100% of its profits to support the foundation’s mission. The Children’s Trust is a dedicated source of revenue, supported by ad valorem property taxes, that funds hundreds of programs across thousands of sites in Miami-Dade to directly serve children and their families. Local voters established The Trust in 2002, and 86% of voters permanently reauthorized it in 2008 to ensure it continues to positively shape Miami-Dade’s future. To learn more, visit www.TheChildrensTrust.org.