This week, we are thrilled to spotlight Ivy Bryant! Ivy is a member of The Marketing Advisory Board and a Senior Director of Client Relationship Management at Cigna. Encouraged by her daughter’s journey with sickle cell disease, Ivy spearheaded the “Safe Swimming with Sickle Cell” pilot program in collaboration with Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and YMCA of Metropolitan Atlanta and The Cigna Group.

Safe Swimming with Sickle Cell is a program designed to offer swim lessons that are both clinically and culturally tailored to the needs of children with sickle cell disease. Safe Swimming with Sickle Cell launched during camp at Camp Crescent Moon on July 22-26th and served 80 kids with sickle cell anemia. The camp focused on educating the caretaker community and children on the importance of proper swimming preparation. Additionally, focusing on driving strong mental health practices by providing coping mechanisms and reducing the social stigma of chronic disease. Swimming with Sickle Cell created a sense of belongingness and connectedness with campers to show them that they can thrive beyond their disease.