19 August 2026

Lessons help Linda overcome her fear of water

Since joining Royal Life Saving WA’s Multicultural Women’s Only swimming lessons, Linda Larbi no longer approaches the water with the same fear she once carried.

Linda taught herself basic swimming skills while growing up in Ghana but never learnt how to safely respond in an emergency, which often left her feeling worried when visiting the beach with family.

Shortly after moving to Kalgoorlie-Boulder in 2022, Linda joined the Multicultural lessons at the Goldfields Oasis Recreation Centre where she started to build lifesaving skills to help her enjoy the water safely.

With support from her instructor and encouragement from the other women in her class, Linda quickly began developing more advanced swimming technique and confidence in the water. She says that swimming has now become one of her favourite hobbies. She especially enjoys backstroke and spending time at the beach when visiting Esperance.

Supported by the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder, Royal Life Saving WA’s Multicultural swimming programs are designed to give adults and children from culturally diverse backgrounds the opportunity to learn swimming and water safety skills at their own pace.

Water safety has always felt personal to Linda because of her experiences growing up in Ghana. She remembers Easter Monday as one of the country’s busiest days for visiting the beach, when families and friends gather along the coast to swim, celebrate and spend time together.

This holiday period can be especially dangerous for people travelling from inland areas who may have limited swimming experience or little understanding of ocean conditions. A 2013 study published in the International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education found that 37% of surveyed beach visitors in Ghana would unknowingly choose to swim in an area affected by a hazardous rip current.

Those risks stayed with Linda and made her nervous around water. She worried she would not know how to keep herself safe or help someone else if something went wrong. Since joining the Women’s Only lessons, that fear has begun to ease. She now loves knowing that "if there was an emergency I could help the community".

Beyond learning new swimming skills, Linda has enjoyed meeting other women in her community and building new friendships through the program. As a Migrant Advocate and board member of the Goldfields Multicultural Community Organisation, Linda works closely with multicultural communities across the region and understands how much these connections can mean.

She knows from first-hand experience that settling into a new community or trying something unfamiliar can be daunting. For adults who did not grow up having swimming lessons, joining a class can feel like a big step. As an ambassador for the program in the Goldfields, Linda hopes sharing her experience will encourage others to give swimming lessons a try.

Thank you to the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder for their continued support of Royal Life Saving WA’s Multicultural Swimming Programs in the Goldfields community.