At the 2003 ILS Board Meetings the St Lucia Lifesaving Association was accepted as a Full Member of ILS.
At the recent Board Meeting in Egypt the President of the Americas reported that the ILS Meetings in St Lucia in 2003 had great benefits for the St Lucia Lifesaving Association.
In 2003, the St Lucia Lifesaving Association hosted the Caribbean Lifesaving Competitions, the Caribbean Lifesaving Conference and the ILS Commissions and Board Meetings. The Competition and Conference focused on developing lifesaving skills and sport throughout the Caribbean region.
The Conference saw the participation of over 120 participants from five island lifesaving associations including; Antigua, Barbados, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and St Lucia. St Lucia also had many other first aid, tourism agencies represented at the event. Many ILS delegates attending the ILS meetings
presented topics at the Conference. The championships saw the participation of 12 teams from Jamaica, Barbados, St Lucia and Trinidad and Tobago.
As part of ILS involved to the Championship with the IOC funding legacy equipment was purchased and distributed to the five Islands at the event.
Lifesaving Society Canada assisted in the development of the Association by sending instructors to train instructors, examiners and life guards to enable them to become self-sufficient. St Lucia are now capable of training and examining at ILS Lifesaver level. Certification for training and examining lifeguards will be the next step in the development process.
Hosting the ILS Board of Directors meeting and conference greatly assisted the Association locally, as it made the public and local organisations aware of the importance of lifesaving and lifeguarding.
People also became aware that this was not just a local programme, but one run both regionally and internationally. As a result, the Association has not only had persons wanting to participate in courses, but also wanting to become lifesaving instructors and to become involved in the competitive lifesaving.
Targeting a Water Safety Programme and Junior Lifesaving are now among the Associations highest priorities as parents want their children to achieve what they were never given the opportunity to do and what they have now been made aware of. Raising funds for the conference was very difficult, but of great long-term benefits. This event increased the level of lifesaving activity all over the Caribbean region.
The St Lucia Lifesaving Association thanks ILS for having St Lucia host its conference and hopes that the experience will now pave the way for other developing nations to be given the same opportunity.
