Students at the learned a life-saving lesson through the story of a baby otter when the (CARD-USF) visited their campus.
Christina Spencer, MED, MAJS, and Beth Boone, PhD, the executive director of CARD, read "Josh the Baby Otter," a children鈥檚 book that teaches safety in and around water to students at the center. The story stresses several key messages, including never swimming alone. Students also met a surprise guest during the visit: Josh the Otter!
Water safety remains a priority for CARD-USF. For years, the organization has purchased "Josh the Baby Otter" books and materials to support community education. School visits and community outreach are central to CARD-USF鈥檚 broader safety initiative.
According to the , drowning remains the leading cause of death for children with autism.
鈥淲ater safety training is absolutely critical for our community,鈥 Spencer said. 鈥淐hildren with autism are 160 times more likely to drown than their neurotypical peers, and in Florida, where water is everywhere, water safety training becomes even more urgent.鈥
Josh the Otter and Christina Spencer read to a group of students at Florida Autism Center of Excellence.
was written by Blake Collingsworth after the drowning death of his two-and-a-half-year-old son, Joshua. The tragedy led to the creation of the Joshua Collingsworth Memorial Foundation, which educates children and adults worldwide about water safety through drowning-prevention campaigns and early childhood water safety training.
For FACE, a charter school serving students on the autism spectrum, the message carries special meaning. The visit also honored the memory of former student Sthella Lopez, who drowned in 2020.
鈥淭his was an especially important event for us,鈥 said Sydney Jackson, principal of FACE. 鈥淥ur FACE family loves to remember Sthella by her pretty singing voice, adorable smile and colorful hair bows, but this was the first time we鈥檝e honored her memory with a water safety event.鈥
Sthella loved animals and music, so we know that she would have loved Josh the Otter and his water safety song.
Sydney Jackson, principal of FACE
CARD-USF provided books and safety materials for the school to distribute to students while Tampa Metropolitan Area YMCA provided vouchers for free adaptive swim lessons.
CARD relies on donations to their to support these safety initiatives.
鈥淲e are extremely grateful to our donors for supporting CARD, especially when we see the direct impact of our drowning prevention programs, like Josh the Otter, on young students with autism spectrum disorder,鈥 said Christine Rover, assistant director.
School visits also allow CARD to connect directly with families and communities to promote safety.
鈥淚t is so encouraging to see the impact that this event made on our school community,鈥 Jackson said. 鈥淚鈥檝e had multiple parents come up to me since the event sharing stories about how much their students loved meeting Josh the Otter, reading his story and doing their water safety pledge. One of our elementary students even told his [applied behavior analysis] therapist that Josh the Otter came to visit him at school and told him to 鈥榥ever swim alone.鈥欌