This past Saturday, September 17, we had our first in-person Beach Ball fundraising event since the pandemic. It was inspiring to see how many business and community leaders that came out to support our water safety and drowning prevention initiative.

Our Wine & Spirits Wall, Silent Auction and Live Auction were a big hit thanks to all of our sponsors and attendees. The event would not have been a success without you!

Our program was kicked off by two Y kids – Paloma Rospigliosi and Bastiaan Bicerne – who drove home the message to our attendees that it is up to them as adults to make sure all kids are safe around water and know how to swim. They did a phenomenal job and we had our best Beach Ball ever!

We also had the opportunity to recognize Dusty and Rhonda Milner, and Milner, Inc., for their extraordinary work around shallow water blackout prevention, and their support of the Y. Shallow water blackout is a different type of drowning caused by prolonged breath holding. The person passes out due to the lack of oxygen to the brain. More often than not, if the person does not receive immediate medical attention, it ends in death. After the death of their son in 2011, the Milners founded Shallow Water Blackout Prevention in an effort to prevent more senseless deaths. They have worked steadily to bring awareness to the dangers of breath-holding and provide safety education and training around shallow water blackout. Find out more at www.shallowwaterblackoutprevention.org.

Thank you so much to our sponsors: Presenting Sponsor – Nicklaus Children’s Hospital; Titanium Sponsor – Brown & Brown Miami; Diamond Sponsors – Bacardi, Delta, Publix Super Markets Charities; Platinum Plus Sponsors – Related, Red Dot Miami/Spectrum Miami; and others. We couldn’t continue to do the work we do.

Thank you to all of the Y Staff who worked to make this event a success, especially our Executive Director of Special Events & Community Relations, Aimee Fretwell, for leading the charge and making Beach Ball better and better each year! We hope you will join us next year. You can also find photos on Flickr at BEACH BALL 2022 PHOTOS.