September 26, 2025 • 7 mins
Sanaa Chege, Author of "A Diver Like Me," talks about her book which is the story of a young Black girl who is passionate about honing her diving skills. How does she do it? With a dedicated focus, along with tons of practice and teamwork!
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Good afternoon. I'm Andrea Coleman with a Black Information Network
at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundations fifty fourth Annual Legislative Conference,
and we are talking with Sanat Shagy and I hope
I pronounced her name correct. She is a swimming phenomy
all of what are you eleven or twelve? I forget
what it is.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
I'm seventeen.
Speaker 1 (00:19):
You are seventeen. Oh, I'm so sorry. I was looking
at you. We were going to try and talk with
you a few weeks ago when at the drowning of
black actor Malcolm Jamal Warner, and we weren't able to
coordinate with your team. So it is really a delight
to speak with you today and to learn more about
everything that you're doing. First, if you will just share
(00:40):
with our listeners a little bit about who you are
and what you do.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
Yeah. So I'm snaw. I'm seventeen. I'm an author. Or
wrote my book at fourteen and I'm self published at fifteen.
In my book is called A Diver Like Me, and
it's about my experience being a diver and how I'm
underrepresented in my sport. So I want to encourage other
young black and brown kids to learn to swim and
also try diving.
Speaker 1 (01:02):
And how are you encouraging them because you have a
program too where you're actually helping them learn the skill.
Speaker 2 (01:08):
Yeah. So my family has a foundation and it's called
the Making Waves Foundation, and we go around and teach
kids in and out of the water water safety. And
I'm also a certified water safety instructor, so I can
teach all ages how to swim. So with putting things
in the classroom and then bringing it into the water,
we're helping kids learn how to swim.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
That's really really important. And I've got some stats here
that kind of speak to why what you do is
so very important. According to the CDC, black children age
ten to fourteen drown at a rate of seven point
six times higher than white children in swimming pools, and
black children age five to nine drown at a rate
of more than twice the rate of white children in general. Wow,
(01:52):
how does swimming help decrease those statistics?
Speaker 2 (01:56):
Well, learning how to swim is a survival skill. You
can go to the pool and have fun, or you
can be in the ocean, like when you go on vacation,
you're swimming in the ocean. And so it's very important
to learn how to swim because it can help you
have fun and just be safe, Like you don't know
what's gonna happen if you know there's gonna be a
flood or you know, tsunami wherever you live, and learning
(02:16):
to swim will help you by yourself safe.
Speaker 1 (02:19):
So what age did you start learning to swim? And
what took you in so deeply where you realize that
this was something that you know connected with you and
in such a meaningful way.
Speaker 2 (02:30):
So I've been swimming since I was six months so
since I can remember, and I've always liked swimming in
the ocean, Like that's my favorite part of just being
in the open sea and like looking at all the fish.
So nothing o me. My mom drew me in and
she like did mommy and me classes with me. So
I've always been swimming. It's like always been a part
of my life.
Speaker 1 (02:49):
While and what brought you to diving.
Speaker 2 (02:51):
I wanted to do a sport in high school and
I liked swimming, so I wanted to swim. But then
my mom talked to some of the parents who had
kids on the team and they said they need to
divers to So I took classes for both, and I
like diving better.
Speaker 1 (03:04):
That's not that's outstanding. So for our parents who may
be a little apprehensive of water, right because some of
us get a little nervous around it, and uh, well,
we know we may need to engage and learn to swim.
Fear can sometimes overwhelm our senses and we stay away
from it. Why should we overcome that fear and engage
and learn how to swim if we don't know how?
Speaker 2 (03:25):
Oh, I think you should learn how to swim because
it's going to help you in the long run. And
the longer that you stop like learning because of fear
is it would just it won't help you. So the
easier the I'm trying to think, sorry, the earlier you
learn the easier, the easier it will be. So the
more you keep pushing it away, it's just you're building
(03:45):
on the fear and it's just going to be harder.
Speaker 1 (03:47):
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. How did when
you're teaching other young children to swim, how do you
help them overcome that fear?
Speaker 2 (03:56):
Yeah? So with children, their fear sometimes it's not like
they don't have experience with it, so they're just scared
because it's unknown. So I hope them with like toys
and just fun activities so they can you know, just
see that the water is like safe and that it's fun.
Speaker 1 (04:14):
That's really good. How long does it take the average person? Uh?
And I guess I don't know if it varies by
age or not, but how long does it take the
average person to learn to swim?
Speaker 2 (04:25):
I mean learning? You know, you build on top of
other skills, and so like with my experience I've taught,
I've taught a bunch of different kids, and like on average,
just to like be able to swim like just you know, freestyle,
it's just taking like two or three lessons. Wow, So
like you learn fast and you can keep building on
your skills. You just have to go for it.
Speaker 1 (04:42):
That's really good. And what do we look for in
a coach?
Speaker 2 (04:45):
What do we look for in a coach? Someone that
is caring, Because you don't want someone that's just gonna
like tell you what to do. You want someone that's
going to help you and it's going to like work
through your fear, like people are scared. Like I've taught
adults before, and so it's different than teaching kids. So
they should have like variety.
Speaker 1 (05:00):
Okay, very good. Now, tell us about this book that
you've written.
Speaker 2 (05:04):
So on my book talks about my experience when I
was on a summer team and there weren't many people
who look like me, and so I just wanted there
to be more divers who look like me. But there's
like a root to the problem, which is learning to swim.
So I talk about the history and why like black
people don't swim because you know, you have to do
your hair and it's a long process, and also like
(05:26):
like adults, like back in the day, like there was
not a lot of places where you could swim as
a black person. So there's a lot of different reasons
and why black people don't swim. And so just showing
that we can and that we do so then other
people want to do it as well.
Speaker 1 (05:45):
I love that. I love that. So your message to
the black community regarding the importance of learning to swim,
what is it? What do you tell people when you
see them? Or if you say, if you had a
large audience before you and you had the opportunity to
speak any message you could on the importance of swimming,
what would it be.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
I would say that even if you don't know how
to swimmer, you do know how to swim, learn at
least try and encourage others that you know that don't
know how to swim to swim because you just one step.
You just got to take the first step and take
a lesson and you know, get the basic skills. You
don't have to go like further than that. Just learn
how to swim so you can protect yourself.
Speaker 1 (06:24):
I love that. And so what's next for you?
Speaker 2 (06:27):
What's next? I want to, you know, go to college,
hopefully dive in college.
Speaker 1 (06:32):
Very good, very good. Then there are not very many
black divers from what I understand, at least on the
collegiate level.
Speaker 2 (06:38):
No, not very many.
Speaker 1 (06:39):
Please keep us posted. No, how can we learn more
about you?
Speaker 2 (06:42):
Where?
Speaker 1 (06:42):
Where can we find your book? And where can we
learn about you and the services you offer?
Speaker 2 (06:46):
So you can find my book on checkycorner dot com,
which is my website, and you can also find like
media interviews about me on there, and that's where you
can find me.
Speaker 1 (06:57):
That's very good. And I'm so sorry I said you
were eleven or twelve for some reason, that's what's stuck
in my mind. But whatever it is, we just love
what you're bringing to the space. And this space and
this conversation at whatever age you are and continue doing
it with such excellence. We're just cheering you on and
really thank you for, i don't know, just bearing up
(07:17):
and getting involved in helping us make certain we're doing
what we need to do to stay healthy and vibrant
in the water. Thank you for having me, Oh absolutely,
thank you
Good afternoon. I'm Andrea Coleman with a Black Information Network
at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundations fifty fourth Annual Legislative Conference,
and we are talking with Sanat Shagy and I hope
I pronounced her name correct. She is a swimming phenomy
all of what are you eleven or twelve? I forget
what it is.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
I'm seventeen.
Speaker 1 (00:19):
You are seventeen. Oh, I'm so sorry. I was looking
at you. We were going to try and talk with
you a few weeks ago when at the drowning of
black actor Malcolm Jamal Warner, and we weren't able to
coordinate with your team. So it is really a delight
to speak with you today and to learn more about
everything that you're doing. First, if you will just share
(00:40):
with our listeners a little bit about who you are
and what you do.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
Yeah. So I'm snaw. I'm seventeen. I'm an author. Or
wrote my book at fourteen and I'm self published at fifteen.
In my book is called A Diver Like Me, and
it's about my experience being a diver and how I'm
underrepresented in my sport. So I want to encourage other
young black and brown kids to learn to swim and
also try diving.
Speaker 1 (01:02):
And how are you encouraging them because you have a
program too where you're actually helping them learn the skill.
Speaker 2 (01:08):
Yeah. So my family has a foundation and it's called
the Making Waves Foundation, and we go around and teach
kids in and out of the water water safety. And
I'm also a certified water safety instructor, so I can
teach all ages how to swim. So with putting things
in the classroom and then bringing it into the water,
we're helping kids learn how to swim.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
That's really really important. And I've got some stats here
that kind of speak to why what you do is
so very important. According to the CDC, black children age
ten to fourteen drown at a rate of seven point
six times higher than white children in swimming pools, and
black children age five to nine drown at a rate
of more than twice the rate of white children in general. Wow,
(01:52):
how does swimming help decrease those statistics?
Speaker 2 (01:56):
Well, learning how to swim is a survival skill. You
can go to the pool and have fun, or you
can be in the ocean, like when you go on vacation,
you're swimming in the ocean. And so it's very important
to learn how to swim because it can help you
have fun and just be safe, Like you don't know
what's gonna happen if you know there's gonna be a
flood or you know, tsunami wherever you live, and learning
(02:16):
to swim will help you by yourself safe.
Speaker 1 (02:19):
So what age did you start learning to swim? And
what took you in so deeply where you realize that
this was something that you know connected with you and
in such a meaningful way.
Speaker 2 (02:30):
So I've been swimming since I was six months so
since I can remember, and I've always liked swimming in
the ocean, Like that's my favorite part of just being
in the open sea and like looking at all the fish.
So nothing o me. My mom drew me in and
she like did mommy and me classes with me. So
I've always been swimming. It's like always been a part
of my life.
Speaker 1 (02:49):
While and what brought you to diving.
Speaker 2 (02:51):
I wanted to do a sport in high school and
I liked swimming, so I wanted to swim. But then
my mom talked to some of the parents who had
kids on the team and they said they need to
divers to So I took classes for both, and I
like diving better.
Speaker 1 (03:04):
That's not that's outstanding. So for our parents who may
be a little apprehensive of water, right because some of
us get a little nervous around it, and uh, well,
we know we may need to engage and learn to swim.
Fear can sometimes overwhelm our senses and we stay away
from it. Why should we overcome that fear and engage
and learn how to swim if we don't know how?
Speaker 2 (03:25):
Oh, I think you should learn how to swim because
it's going to help you in the long run. And
the longer that you stop like learning because of fear
is it would just it won't help you. So the
easier the I'm trying to think, sorry, the earlier you
learn the easier, the easier it will be. So the
more you keep pushing it away, it's just you're building
(03:45):
on the fear and it's just going to be harder.
Speaker 1 (03:47):
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. How did when
you're teaching other young children to swim, how do you
help them overcome that fear?
Speaker 2 (03:56):
Yeah? So with children, their fear sometimes it's not like
they don't have experience with it, so they're just scared
because it's unknown. So I hope them with like toys
and just fun activities so they can you know, just
see that the water is like safe and that it's fun.
Speaker 1 (04:14):
That's really good. How long does it take the average person? Uh?
And I guess I don't know if it varies by
age or not, but how long does it take the
average person to learn to swim?
Speaker 2 (04:25):
I mean learning? You know, you build on top of
other skills, and so like with my experience I've taught,
I've taught a bunch of different kids, and like on average,
just to like be able to swim like just you know, freestyle,
it's just taking like two or three lessons. Wow, So
like you learn fast and you can keep building on
your skills. You just have to go for it.
Speaker 1 (04:42):
That's really good. And what do we look for in
a coach?
Speaker 2 (04:45):
What do we look for in a coach? Someone that
is caring, Because you don't want someone that's just gonna
like tell you what to do. You want someone that's
going to help you and it's going to like work
through your fear, like people are scared. Like I've taught
adults before, and so it's different than teaching kids. So
they should have like variety.
Speaker 1 (05:00):
Okay, very good. Now, tell us about this book that
you've written.
Speaker 2 (05:04):
So on my book talks about my experience when I
was on a summer team and there weren't many people
who look like me, and so I just wanted there
to be more divers who look like me. But there's
like a root to the problem, which is learning to swim.
So I talk about the history and why like black
people don't swim because you know, you have to do
your hair and it's a long process, and also like
(05:26):
like adults, like back in the day, like there was
not a lot of places where you could swim as
a black person. So there's a lot of different reasons
and why black people don't swim. And so just showing
that we can and that we do so then other
people want to do it as well.
Speaker 1 (05:45):
I love that. I love that. So your message to
the black community regarding the importance of learning to swim,
what is it? What do you tell people when you
see them? Or if you say, if you had a
large audience before you and you had the opportunity to
speak any message you could on the importance of swimming,
what would it be.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
I would say that even if you don't know how
to swimmer, you do know how to swim, learn at
least try and encourage others that you know that don't
know how to swim to swim because you just one step.
You just got to take the first step and take
a lesson and you know, get the basic skills. You
don't have to go like further than that. Just learn
how to swim so you can protect yourself.
Speaker 1 (06:24):
I love that. And so what's next for you?
Speaker 2 (06:27):
What's next? I want to, you know, go to college,
hopefully dive in college.
Speaker 1 (06:32):
Very good, very good. Then there are not very many
black divers from what I understand, at least on the
collegiate level.
Speaker 2 (06:38):
No, not very many.
Speaker 1 (06:39):
Please keep us posted. No, how can we learn more
about you?
Speaker 2 (06:42):
Where?
Speaker 1 (06:42):
Where can we find your book? And where can we
learn about you and the services you offer?
Speaker 2 (06:46):
So you can find my book on checkycorner dot com,
which is my website, and you can also find like
media interviews about me on there, and that's where you
can find me.
Speaker 1 (06:57):
That's very good. And I'm so sorry I said you
were eleven or twelve for some reason, that's what's stuck
in my mind. But whatever it is, we just love
what you're bringing to the space. And this space and
this conversation at whatever age you are and continue doing
it with such excellence. We're just cheering you on and
really thank you for, i don't know, just bearing up
(07:17):
and getting involved in helping us make certain we're doing
what we need to do to stay healthy and vibrant
in the water. Thank you for having me, Oh absolutely,
thank you
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