The Alexandra Youth Swim Academy is a collaborative effort by people who genuinely care for the safety of the children of Alexandra, and who believe that learning to swim is a fundamental part of any child’s upbringing. Drowning deaths are preventable if these kids are taught water safety and receive proper swim instruction.

The township of Alexandra, which forms part of the city of Johannesburg, is a vibrant but impoverished community in desperate need of support. I originally focused on Alexandra when starting my “Uplift thru Sport” program because I felt that I could make a meaningful difference to improve the lives of Alexandra’s boys and girls.

In Alexandra, 1.2 million people live in an overly-crowded 2 square mile area, with most families living in makeshift shacks next to and on top of each other. By comparison, in typical Northern Virginia communities where I’m from, the population density is approximately 950 people per square mile, or less than 2,000 people in a space comparable to the size of Alexandra.

Alexandra’s Jukskei river meanders through the township with shacks built right up to its embankment. Flash flooding often occurs due to thunderstorms, which contributes to the drownings. In December 2022, 15 Alexandrans who were participating in a baptism ritual alongside the river were tragically swept away when a storm caused water levels to rise suddenly.