Building on a Tradition of Trust

Preventing injuries and deaths through education has always been the mission of the American Red Cross Volunteer life Saving Corps. It’s just another way we serve our community. At present, we accommodate school groups, local businesses and our own staff as best we can in our modest Training Room, which we built during our renovations in 1996 by converting half of our boat and rescue truck garage into a make-shift class room. It has served us well over the years, but as we re-double our efforts to expand programs such as our semi-annual Lifeguard Recruit Classes, our 8-week Junior Lifeguard Camp, public education campaigns, and our child drowning prevention program, “The Beach and Beyond”, we foresee a need to build a proper classroom that reflects the passion and professionalism of our institution. Plans have already been drawn up and our property surveyed; we are ready to break ground. However, for our community education building to become a brick-and-mortar reality, we will need the support of our community behind us. Every day brings us closer to our financial goals, as community leaders, lifeguard alumni, and members of the public-at-large show their appreciation for a volunteer lifesaving tradition closing in on its centennial anniversary. If you’d like to invest in nearly one hundred years of self-less community service and in the future of Jacksonville Beach’s citizens and patrons, contact us and make drowning and first-aid education a priority.

For additional information on our organization’s history and detailed rennovation plans, download the New Century Capital Campaign document below.