The Flowers Sea Swim is one of the most popular annual sports events in the Cayman Islands.
It draws hundreds of people into the warm waters of Seven Mile Beach and always delivers plenty of fun and excitement for participants.
This year, however, the race is different.
Set for this Saturday, the swim has been renamed the ‘Flowers Recovery Mile’ and competition will take a backseat to noble efforts to help others.
The highlight of this year’s swim undoubtedly will be the scheduled drawing and awarding of a large prize package to two Grand Cayman families.
Selected by the Department of Social Services based on need, the eligible families were among those hit hardest by Hurricane Ivan last year.
The assortments of gifts the two families will receive include free gas for a year, house supplies and other useful items.
The packages are valued at nearly $20,000, just the kind of boost that can get a devastated family back on track.
The kindness of the swim’s organisers and sponsors is obvious.
What may not be so obvious is the lesson they are giving the Cayman Islands sports community.
Many, if not most, sports events held in the Cayman Islands can and should have a charitable element to them.
Sports events are fun and entertaining; they can also be helpful to others.
Various sports have used competitions to raise money for good causes with success.
GOAL Cayman, for example, has raised many thousands of dollars for the world’s poor with their popular seven-side football tournament.
The Caymanian Compass encourages all sports clubs and associations to consider opportunities to incorporate more charitable payoffs from their events.
When it comes to giving money to organisations such as the Red Cross, Lighthouse School, Special Olympics, Cayman Loves Children, Humane Society, Pines Retirement Home, Crisis Centre, Big Brothers-Big Sisters, Cayman Hospice Care, Cancer Society, NCVO and others, the amount is less important than the crucial first step of deciding to give.
Related Videos
