A Community‑Led Strategy for Rural Drowning Prevention
Safe Waters is a rural health equity pilot designed to dismantle structural barriers to swim instruction and water safety education in Barry and Stone Counties, Missouri. Although nearly every county in Missouri contains rivers, creeks, or waterways, rural families face disproportionate risks of drowning due to geographic isolation, limited infrastructure, and the prohibitive costs of private swim instruction.
Despite the release of the U.S. National Water Safety Action Plan (2023), rural communities remain largely absent from national drowning prevention strategies. This omission is critical, as drowning rates in rural areas are 1.5 times higher than in urban areas, and most incidents occur in natural water bodies such as rivers and lakes (U.S. National Water Safety Action Plan, 2023).
What We Do
At REACH Lab, we co-create systems-level solutions to advance health equity in rural communities. Our work begins with the voices of those most impacted—families, youth, educators, first responders, and local partners—who guide every phase of our research and design.
We facilitate participatory research, community-led pilot programs, and cross-sector collaborations that address upstream health inequities. Through initiatives like Safe Waters, we transform underutilized local assets into shared public health infrastructure—ensuring life-saving resources like swim instruction and water safety are accessible to all.
Our goal is to build scalable, community-powered models that shift power, reallocate resources, and embed equity into the core of public health systems.
Our Values
We believe rural communities are not resource-poor—they are under-invested in.
REACH Lab is guided by the principles of:
- Community Power – Those closest to the challenges are closest to the solutions.
- Health Equity – Every person deserves access to conditions that allow them to live safely and fully, regardless of geography or income.
- Collaboration – Systems change happens when diverse sectors—health, education, public safety, and community—work together.
- Transparency & Accountability – Our processes, data, and toolkits are open-source and shared to strengthen rural systems beyond our own footprint.
We are committed to research that serves, not extracts—and to building public health systems that are just, inclusive, and rooted in community leadership.
Join Our Amazing CAB
Are you passionate about creating real change in your rural community? We’re building a Community Advisory Board (CAB) that puts local voices at the center of public health solutions.
As a CAB member, you won’t just give feedback—you’ll co-lead. Together, we’ll:
- Shape the design of Safe Waters and future REACH Lab projects
- Identify barriers and assets in your community
- Guide surveys, select pilot sites, and co-develop resources
- Build power and advocate for systems-level change
You Belong here!
We Welcome:
- Parents & caregivers
- Local youth (ages 14–18)
- Educators & school health staff
- EMS, fire, and water safety personnel
- Library workers, nonprofit leaders, and community champions
CAB members receive stipends for their time, access to training in community-based research, and the opportunity to shape how rural health equity work is done statewide.
📝 Interested in joining? Complete our interest form or reach out to our team—we’d love to hear from you.
Reach out to us today to explore how we can support your mission and help enact meaningful change.