Welcome to
PATRON OF THE SOUND
“We are no longer separated by oceans.
We are joined by them.”
-Lewis Pugh, United Nations Patron of the Oceans
Patron of the Sound was inspired by the tremendous efforts and accomplishments of swimmer and United Nations Patron of the Oceans,
Lewis Pugh.
Find Lewis!
Photo Credit Kelvin Trautman https://kelvintrautman.com
Lewis swims in some of the coldest water in the world (water that should still be ice) to call attention to climate change, the importance of environmental justice, and the critical conservation and preservation efforts needed now in some of the most vulnerable areas of our planet.
To date, Lewis’ campaigns have been instrumental in the protection of 2.2 million km² of ocean. (That’s an area the size of Western Europe!)
Learn more about The Lewis Pugh Foundation and follow Lewis’ latest campaigns here.
Become a Patron of the Sound
Use this page as resource to discover all the ways local swimmers and open water enthusiasts challenge themselves every day, and how we can all give back to the waters that sustain us and entertain us.
Puget Sound is the third-largest estuary in the United States
and is part of the Salish Sea.
Become a Patron of the Sound
and learn more about the great organizations that support our
oceans, rivers and waterways.
CHECK OUT A FEW OF MY FAVORITE ORGANIZATIONS
“If you can swim in Puget Sound, you can swim just about anywhere in the world!”
-KC
(2018 English Channel Crossing, Puget Sound Swimmers, photo credit Jon Meill)
Honored to be part of “Puget Sound Swimmers.” We successfully swam the English Channel in July of 2018, benefiting The People for Puget Sound and The Washington Environmental Council.
The actual path of our English Channel Swim.
Puget Sound Swimmers
Kate Curtis
Kate grew up jumping in the ocean on Cape Cod but has only discovered the thrill of open water swimming over the last 7 years. She and Curtis Vredenburg swam the English Channel in 2016, but unfortunately did not make it to France.
Kate is a passionate environmentalist and is inspired by fellow open-water swimmer Lewis Pugh, and his activism to call attention to global climate change.
Randy Perkins
Randy is always up for an adventure! He is the 12th person to make it across the Strait of Magellan, but had an unsuccessful solo attempt of the English Channel in 2017. A late comer to endurance swimming challenges, he has only seven winters of skin swimming under his belt.
Heidi Skrzypek
Heidi grew up body-surfing in Coronado, CA, and took up swimming as a late-in-life athlete off of her resident Vashon Island for health benefits. She competes in numerous open water races for fun, fitness and camaraderie, and advocates for clean water through local causes.
Curtis Vredenburg
Curtis is at home in the water and has introduced many people to the joys of open water swimming over the past 7 years. As a classically trained French chef, Curtis loves to cook for his friends and you will often find him deep in conversation, bonding over food, a glass of red wine, and swimming stories. Growing up in Mexico, Curtis has had to acclimatize to the chilly waters of Puget Sound and the North Sea.
OUR GOAL
Our goal to swim the English Channel required a level of dedication that tested me every day. Like striving for any goal, there were days when I found it harder to stay committed. But the daily dedication became easier the day I connected my goal to a larger purpose.
Swimming for The Washington Environmental Council and People for Puget Sound provided that purpose.
Our team is committed to protecting the oceans we swim in, here at home and around the world.
During the summer of 2021, we have two more Channel relays on the books. One from England to France, and another from Jersey to France and back. My team and I will once again attempt to swim across the busiest shipping channel in the world wearing only a bathing suit, a cap, and a pair of goggles.
10 DAYS IN DOVER
Swimming the English Channel has been a life changing event for me. I have always had a great love for the sea, since I was a little girl growing up on the beaches of Cape Cod. However, through my open water swim training, I have also gained a tremendous amount of respect for the sea, and how dangerous it can become in only a matter of minutes.
I have committed to donate 50% of all royalties from my next book, 10 Days in Dover, to supporting the efforts of the lifesaving charity, the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI)
What’s happening
Around the Sound
Circumnavigation of Blake Island
There are lots of ways to circumnavigate Blake Island. But last Thursday we chose to swim it. The entire week had been full of beautiful PNW August days. Meaning sun, 72 and blue skies. Except for the day we chose to swim. I woke to heavy rain in Seattle (I know,...
What’s happening
Around the Sound
Circumnavigation of Blake Island
There are lots of ways to circumnavigate Blake Island. But last Thursday we chose to swim it. The entire week had been full of beautiful PNW August days. Meaning sun, 72 and blue skies. Except for the day we chose to swim. I woke to heavy rain in Seattle (I know,...