Sea Tow Tampa Bay, known as "AAA of the sea", assisting stranded, broken down or endangered boaters in open water, announced today it will loan life jackets to Tampa Bay area boaters. They need not be Sea Tow members.
“Road service at sea,” is how Sea Tow Tampa Bay owner Cile Moreno describes the company and keeping boaters safe is part of that service.
Moreno, a veteran boater, has been around boats since she was 10. The best boating advice she learned?
"Only one guy can walk on water and [boats] don’t have brakes,” she says. This attitude is why she makes boat safety a top priority in her family — and why she's bringing safety to the sea.
“We are launching the life jacket loaner stand,” Moreno says. “This is a program through the Sea Tow Foundation... and is a non-profit program for safety on the water.”
Moreno found a grant and her family-run franchise applied for it. The grant provided money to set up a stand for 20 life jackets at Maximo Park. The stand has six infant, four children, eight adult and two dog life jackets available. Anyone can borrow them.
The stand operates on the honor system, Moreno explains. No need to sign up or sign out life jackets.
“If people are going out boating and brought friends, they may not have enough life jackets, so they can borrow them from the stand,” she said. “All we ask of them is to bring them back.”
St. Pete, for its part, has allowed Sea Tow to place the loaner rack and jackets at the park (the city has no financial outlay for this).
Moreno’s two grandsons, “captains” Jack (2-and-a-half) and Henry (an infant) Jaeger were on hand to demonstrate how to put on a life jacket. The little Captain Jack was not excited to wear his with all the people watching, but Moreno knows the importance of children staying safe.
Watch Captain Jack's take on the program.
“When my sons were growing up, the rule was they had to wear their offshore jackets on their boat,” she said. “Kids don’t like to wear them because they’re bulky, but it but it will save their lives.”
If you want to borrow a jacket, Moreno says, please do so.
Also, please give the lifejackets a freshwater rinse before you return them to the stand.