Building toward the future

Mike Sciacca

A swarm of more than 500 children and teens in matching red swimsuits

moved about Huntington City Beach Monday in a proficient and

organized manner.

Under the canopy of a flawless blue sky, the would-be lifeguards,

ranging in age from 9 to 17, were participating in a series of drills

as part of training in the Huntington Beach Junior Lifeguard Program,

which recently turned 41.

Broken up into age groups and separated by swim cap color, they

were instructed in first aid and CPR, ran sprints and swam the

“monster mash,” straight up the gut of the Huntington Beach Pier,

around the apex of the pier, then a zig-zag swim back toward shore

through each piling.

Hundreds of participants expertly executing drills showed just how

far the program has come from its humble beginning, when about 17

young men participated in the first junior lifeguard program in the

summer of 1963.

This summer, nearly 1,100 youngsters are participating in the

program.

“It’s come a long, long way,” said Ray Bray, one of the program’s

first instructors back in 1963. “The program is getting better with

each year, and first and foremost, it provides a good recreation

program that serves the basic needs of the community. Just as it was

40 years ago, it’s still about educating our youth about marine

safety and ocean awareness.”

Bray, who retired at the end of the 2002-03 school year as a

teacher and aquatics coach at Fountain Valley High School, became a

local lifeguard in 1956 and a full-time Huntington Beach city

lifeguard in 1962.

He credits Vince Morehouse, then-chief of lifeguards, with

starting the Huntington Beach program.

“The foundation of the program came from a similar program run in

Australia,” Bray said. “That’s where we got our concept.”

Today, the Huntington Beach Junior Lifeguard Program is considered

one of the premier youth educational and recreational programs in the

nation. More than 1,000 students go through a program that mixes

physical activity with recreation and ocean safety each summer.

The program has been attended by students from as far away as

Sweden, Denmark, Japan and Italy. This summer, two students from

England are participating in the program, which runs for eight

consecutive weeks from the end of June to mid-August.

The program is made up of two four-hour training sessions each day

with half of the 1,110 students attending each.

The cost is $500 per student, which pays for three trips, a swim

cap and swimsuit.

The program also extends throughout the world, as it has

participated in a junior lifeguard exchange with Australia, New

Zealand and some European countries.

Twenty-six instructors lead the students through this summer’s

program.

“I have a lot of fun when I come here each day,” said 16-year-old

Huntington Beach High School student Travis Holler, who is in his

sixth year with the program. “When I was little, I looked up to the

lifeguards. Now, I’m a captain in the program and a lifeguard in

training. My goal is to try out for the lifeguards next spring.”

Dave Simcox and Mike Eich coordinate the program.

The two have a long history with the city’s lifeguard program:

Simcox, 58, a physical science teacher at Foothill High School,

became a lifeguard in 1964 and is in his 31st year with the junior

lifeguard program; Eich, 49, an art teacher at Fountain Valley High

School, became a lifeguard in 1971 and first became a junior

lifeguard program participant at Bray’s urging.

The two have seen the program evolve and change throughout the

past 41 years.

“I’d say the huge change in the program is the participation of

females,” Simcox said. “No girls were allowed to participate until

1974. Thirty years later, the girls make up 52% of our students and

are nose-to-nose with the guys. They have really stepped it up in the

program.”

The purpose of the program, which is self-funded, is to help local

youth learn about the ocean and its hazards, Simcox said.

Another key component of the program, he and Eich stress, is the

implementation of teaching courtesy, respect, discipline and good

sportsmanship.

More than 50% of the program is physical, while the other half is

spent in the “classroom.”

“One thing Mike and I do is spend a lot of time with our

instructors, and we teach them how to teach,” Simcox said. “We talk

about breathing, about pace work, about race strategy.”

Delhi Winn, a lifetime Huntington Beach resident, has two

children, Grady, 16, and Sadie, 13, in the program.

Grady, in his second year with the program, is in the Captains

Corps this year.

“We live in the same house on Second Street that I grew up in, and

I’ve watched the junior lifeguards since I was a kid, and I envied

them,” Delhi Winn said. “I never joined, but I thought that when my

children came of age, I’d get them involved with the program.

“My children have learned a lot about the ocean and its

environment. In my house, I teach about respect, and that’s something

they promote here in this program. It’s been great for them.”

Simcox estimated that 65% to 70% of the students from the program

now serve as lifeguards in Huntington Beach.

“It’s a great program whose main goal is to educate the kids about

safety in the beach environment,” said Matt Elser, 22.

Elser, whose brothers, John and Bryce, also went through the

program, is in his second year as program instructor and sixth year

as a lifeguard.

“We talk to the kids about everything, and they really seem to

grasp things,” Elser said. “They are excited to learn, and it’s

really a good experience for them. We also teach discipline, but in a

good way. I enjoyed going through the program myself.”

A major change coming to the program is a 6,000-square-foot

headquarters building, which will be named the Huntington Beach

Marine Educational Building, located about a quarter-mile from the

pier.

With a preliminary estimate of $1.5 million for completion of the

new, city-funded educational facility, the building will accommodate

training of paramedics and emergency medical technicians, lifeguard

cadet training classes and community first aid and CPR classes.

Simcox said the Junior Lifeguard Program is providing $250,000 to

furnish the building. The facility is scheduled to open in November.

“The city has been so supportive of all of our youth programs,” he

said. “I’ve been involved with this program for so many years, and it

continues to thrive. It’s due to some great instructors, great kids

who want to learn about the ocean and marine safety and a supportive

city. We’re definitely building for the future.”