Hermosa Beach 'note and float' nonprofit works to prevent child drownings

HERMOSA BEACH, Calif. (KABC) -- Hermosa Beach resident Rachel Griffiths is on a mission to prevent kids from drowning.

While at Pennsylvania State University, she helped promote the "note and float" concept. Kids who can't swim at a pool get a wristband (the note) and get fitted with a life jacket (the float).

The program was successful in reducing the number of drownings at public pools, but Griffiths found a lot of pools that could use the program the most didn't have the funds to get the life jackets.

To bridge that gap, Griffiths started The Note and Float Life Jacket Fund in 2014. The nonprofit donates life jackets to under-served areas.

The jackets are lightweight and colorful, which the kids love. It also allows the jackets to be sized by color, so a child doesn't have to get fitted each time they come to the pool.

In the four summers the group has operated, they've donated more than 1,000 life jackets to 15 swimming pools across 12 states. Griffiths says her ultimate goal is to prevent all childhood drownings nationwide.