The Minneapolis Lake Monsters is a USA Swimming chartered swim team and parent-run 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization offering competitive swimming opportunities in partnership with Minneapolis Community Education, to children in grades 2 through 12 (ages 7 to 18) in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Our Mission
To bring the joy of competitive swimming to every interested child in Minneapolis regardless of neighborhood or family income, in a safe and supportive environment with an approach that builds each swimmer’s confidence and skill, while fostering a sense of community, teamwork, and fun
Our Vision
The Lake Monsters envision a world where everyone has access to do the things that bring us joy.
Where kids aren’t afraid to try something new or face our doubts. Where we learn to accomplish great things together and get as much joy celebrating each other’s successes as we do celebrating our own.
A world where winning is a byproduct of learning to do better, not the goal.
Our Principles in Practice
The key principles guiding the Minneapolis Lake Monsters are Accessibility, Fun, and Safety
Accessibility
We strive to keep our costs down to be financially accessible, to offer programming at multiple locations within the city limits of Minneapolis to be geographically accessible, to support parents and caregivers to break down any barriers of understanding, and to have no minimum practice or swim meet participation requirements to make the team accessible for busy families.
Fun
We emphasize the joy of swimming, the development of skills that will support an active and healthy lifetime, steady improvement based on setting and working toward personal goals over just winning, and camaraderie and support for each other, both when we achieve our goals as well as when we fall short.
Safety
We prioritize the wellbeing of our swimmers, with strict adherence to SafeSport guidelines as minimum best practices for interactions between swimmers and adults, with no tolerance of bullying, with teaching technique and the need to listen to one’s own body to prevent injury, and with support for the differences in experiences, culture, and gender that make our children the amazing people that they are.
