Patrick Vega Memorial Swim-a-Thon makes a splash

OXNARD, Calif. – An annual swim-a-thon made an even bigger splash this March.

Organizers said it far exceeded its $5,000 scholarship fund goal on Saturday.

The money will help pay for swimming lessons for those who cannot afford them.

The Patrick Vega Memorial Swim-a-thon is named after the Oxnard swimming instructor who died during marine boot camp in San Diego at the age of 21.

He would have turned 28 this month, so some swimmers swam 28 x 100s in his honor.

They raised money by collecting pledges for every lap swam at the Oxnard High Aquatic Center.

They also sold tie-dyed shirt and sweatshirts with the swim-a-thon logo.

Swimmers of all ages took part.

This year swim teams from Oxnard and Pacifica High, who share the Oxnard pool, dedicated their practices to the swim-a-thon.

Channel Islands High School swimmers and water polo players who use the Port Hueneme High School pool also held a swim-a-thon practice for the scholarship fund.

Patrick's parents, Manny and Amy Vega, hugged a lot of participants.

"March 25th will be the anniversary, he will be gone 7 years, so we have been doing this for the last 5 years, because of COVID, so we are doing it, we have great turnouts to support our community," said Amy Vega, who also teaches swimming and water aerobics.

"There are a lot of reminders of Patrick, a lot of memories, so it is bittersweet, but again this was who he was, fun-loving guy, loved the water," said Manny Vega, "anything that had to do with water, teaching kids how to swim, being at the beach, surfing, whatever if it was anything that had to do with water he was all over it."

They also created Save Out Servicemembers or SOS.

The Vegas have worked with Rep. Salud Carbajal, who was also a Marine, to make the first two years of ROTC and all boot camps safe and to make the government more accountable to families when a member of the military dies or is injured during training.

They said it happens more often than people realize.

They are still trying to amend the Ferres Doctrine and they hope a bill will be introduced to cover delayed entry programs.

For more information visit https://saveourservicemembers.org

To make a tax deductible donation to the scholarship fund visit https://www.patrickvegascholarship.org