Please select your home edition
Edition
Switch One Design

BoatUS Foundation kids Life Jacket Loaner Program grows

by D. Scott Croft on 26 Aug 2011
Kids need the right-sized life jacket and a program from the BoatUS Foundation offers to loan them for free for an afternoon, day or weekend. BoatUS Press Room
'Everyone got a life jacket?' It's a simple question boat owners often ask when heading out on the water. However, for younger guests who require the right-sized life jacket that answer isn't always 'yes.' There may be only adult-size life jackets on board, kids may have simply outgrown their life jacket, or perhaps some younger guests joined the outing at the last minute.

To help get kids in right-sized life jackets, the BoatUS Foundation for Boating Safety's Kid's Life Jacket Loaner Program now offers over 530 locations across the country - marinas, boat clubs, waterfront businesses and even fire houses - where kid's life jackets in various sizes (up to 90 pounds) can be borrowed at no cost for the afternoon, day or weekend. Over 40 new loaner locations have been added this year.

'Kids wearing an adult life vest provides a false sense of security because they can easily slip out once they hit the water,' said BoatUS Foundation Program Manager Alanna Keating. 'It's better to make a pit stop at one of our loaner locations and grab one that fits. All you have to do is sign it out and return it when you are done. It's that simple.' Across the country the program on average loans out over 90,000 life jackets each year, and at least three children's lives have been saved since it began in 1997.

For more information on the program or the life jacket laws in your state, please visit www.BoatUS.com/Foundation/LJLP.

The program is largely funded by the half-million members of Boat Owners Association of The United States.
Excess CatamaransSelden 2020 - FOOTERRS Sailing 2021 - FOOTER

Related Articles

GKSS Match Cup Sweden & Nordea Women's Trophy D4
High stakes for semi-finalists as the final four teams in each division are locked in The third day of racing at GKSS Match Cup Sweden saw the completion of the quarter-final match-ups in both the Open and Women's class, locking in the final four teams in each division for Friday's semi-finals.
Posted on 3 Jul
2025 29er Europeans at Lake Garda Day 1
Five teams tied at the top Ikke Huber / Liam Berger (Switzerland) lead the charge after sweeping all 3 races in the Green fleet — an impressive perfect score of 2 points. Lucas & Moritz Hamm, the dynamic twin duo from Germany, matched their Swiss rivals with consistency and pace.
Posted on 3 Jul
Onboard reporters in the Course des Caps
Enjoying the challenge of bringing the race to life In the Course des Caps - Boulogne sur Mer - Banque Populaire du Nord, the Onboard Reporters, or OBRs, are back doing a wonderful job of bringing IMOCA racing to life with pictures, videos, interviews and reports from the boats.
Posted on 3 Jul
Rolex TP52 Worlds in Cascais Day 2
Consistent American Magic Quantum Racing move clear ahead American Magic Quantum Racing stepped three points clear at the top of the 2025 Rolex TP52 World Championship leaderboard today in Cascais, Portugal on the strength of a first and third from two breezy races.
Posted on 3 Jul
505 UK Nationals at Weymouth
Michael Sims and Carl Gibbon hold back Howie Hamlin and Andy Zinn Apart from one 'stumble' in Race 7, the two leading boats were almost invisibly tied together to the point that after 8 races, they were tied on points.
Posted on 3 Jul
Unforgettable Transatlantic Race 2025 finish
First to arrive was Ocean Fifty Calamity, co-skippered by Timo Tavio and Kimo Nordström. It was rush hour in Cowes on Day 15 of the west-to-east Transatlantic Race 2025, as boats crossed the finish line in Cowes within minutes of each other after an epic 3,000-mile battle for top honors in IRC 1.
Posted on 3 Jul
iQFOiL World Championships set to open in Aarhus
Olympic medalists and world-class riders gather in Denmark for the biggest iQFOiL event of the year. The stage is set in Aarhus for a spectacular week of high-speed sailing as the iQFOiL World Championships 2025 kick off on 4 July, bringing together over 200 of the world's best windsurfers from more than 40 nations.
Posted on 3 Jul
The Ocean Race Europe to showcase new race tracker
Developed with PredictWind to revolutionise race coverage The Ocean Race, often described as the toughest test of a team in sport and widely recognised as a leader in impactful ocean health initiatives, and PredictWind, a global leader in marine weather forecasting, are collaborating on a new race tracker.
Posted on 3 Jul
Oliver Heer confirms 2028 Vendée Globe ambition
The Swiss skipper aims to return for the 2028 edition of the legendary solo race with a newer boat After completing the Vendée Globe 2024 on his first attempt, Oliver Heer, the Swiss-German skipper of Tut gut Sailing, has confirmed his intention to return for the 2028 edition of the legendary solo race.
Posted on 3 Jul
SailingFast to provide unrivalled event support
During the WASZP Games at the Weymouth & Portland National Sailing Academy SailingFast UK is set to land in Weymouth on the 8th of July and will be on-site until the 26th of July to provide the GOLD STANDARD in event support.
Posted on 3 Jul