About Me.
Hi! I’m Heidi, and I love teaching your kids to swim and be safe around water!
A little bit about my background: I swam competitively at Thousand Oaks highschool and 2 years at Mesa Community College in San Diego and learned to love the sport and grit required to be better through the water with every race and every practice in front of me. In 1998 (and for the next 8 years roughly) I began working at our community’s most respected and prominent private swim school, Daland Swim School, where I eventually became a senior instructor teaching private and group lessons, “Baby and Me” infant classes, and worked regularly on stroke technique with children and adults.
In 2002 (and for the next 2 summers) while I was in college in San Diego, I traveled to private homes, community pools, and country clubs as an instructor for Lori Kilmer’s Swim Time. Here, I learned other methods and skills to train children (and adults) to swim effectively, safely, and in the most efficient way possible as many were vacationers and had a limited time to master skills. In 2010 I took my Bachelors Degree in Psychology and decided it was time to put it to good use. I worked as a behavioral specialist under clinical supervision, with abused and neglected children for the local non-profit Casa Pacifica. After a few years loving and learning in this role (and all things behavior) I settled into motherhood and family life took precedence. I have been fortunate enough to live in a home with a backyard pool the last 9 years and with a very dear friend’s strong encouragement, I realized I can apply my variety of skills to continue to teach swimming, educate on water safety, and help children (and adults) overcome fears and hesitations around pools, and all bodies of water, in the convenience of my own backyard!
I am now a mother of 4 and wear many hats, but my love and passion will always be in swimming, water safety, and helping children feel understood as they speak with only their behaviors at times. I try to find balance in life by pursuing my passions and instilling water safety and teaching the joys that come from this sport. When I’m not in the pool with your little swimmers, you might find me playing with my kids (or hanging with my teenager), at Crossfit (or talking about crossfit with my husband haha), healthy baking, cooking Paleo food, running a 5k, listening to an educational audiobook or spending time with cousins and family nearby.
Swim with Heidi! is going on its 7th summer this year and has always been a smaller family and friends operation as my schedule is limited while my children are still young, but I am always so appreciative of the word of mouth referrals sent my way and will always do my best to accommodate any and ALL swimmers and their goals!
About Riley
Riley is 19 years old, originally from the South Bay/Redondo beach area, and going to be a Junior at CLU in Thousand Oaks this fall. She swims competitively for the CLU college team and has been a swimmer most of her life. She is the oldest of 4 kids in her family and has confidence and familiarity with younger children. She quickly worked her way up to being a lead instructor for children and adults at a well established larger swim school organization, in the South Bay area, prior to moving to our community for college. She currently has more than 4 years of experience as an instructor. Riley specializes in students ages 6 months to 4 years old and has expertise with many different special needs children. Other skills include: Infant Safety Rescue techniques (infant back floating), supporting children with anxiety to overcome their water fears, and strong technique work to support competitive goals. She is a disciplined and hard working instructor, with great communication skills, and with a drive to help everyone, no matter their age, find their love for swimming and always remember to be safe around water!