Swimmers honor fallen Navy SEALs and their families at annual Tampa Bay Frogman Swim

17th annual Tampa Bay Frogman Swim

This weekend you can help honor our fallen Navy SEALS by supporting the Tampa Bay Frogman Swim.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - One hundred fifty swimmers took a dip into the cold waters of Gandy Beach, swimming three miles in honor of fallen Navy SEALs and Gold Star families.

What they're saying:

"It's just an incredible event. It's all about taking care of the community, the Gold Star family, and remembering the sacrifice and service of my fallen brothers," Dan O’Shea, co-founder of the Tampa Bay Frogman Swim, said.

In its 17th year, the Tampa Bay Frogman Swim aims to bring the community together, remembering those fallen, giving the greatest sacrifice.

"Well, it started with a young man wanted to get out and contribute," Rory O’Connor, on the board of directors, said.  "He was pointing towards going to the Naval Academy, and he had a mentor that suggested swimming across the bay and raising money. We started it initially for one person, Dan Cnossen, in September of ‘09, stepped on a pressure plate in Afghanistan, lost both his legs. We gathered as a community: veterans, active duty, some open water swimmers, 34 of us raised $34,000 that first year. So, we do that ongoing for the Navy SEAL Foundation, for the Gold Star families, but for the foundation itself, which is community, health, education, resilience and supports those four pillars."

Why it matters:

Raising $1.2 million last year for the Navy SEAL Foundation, they hope that amount continues to grow, helping Gold Star families like the Roberts, whose brother, Neil passed away in 2002.

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"He started out just wanting to do Navy. And then he's like, ‘OK, I'm going to go for the top of the top. So, I'm just going to go and be a Seal.’ So, he put that goal out there and he conquered it. So, we're very proud of him," Blair McAnelly, Neil’s sister, said.

"It gives opportunities for, unfortunately, us that have lost our loved ones in times of need, but it gives us an opportunity to experience what our brothers and sisters experienced, right?" McAnelly said. "That community, that family, that some place to go where other people know what you've gone through. It says that's not something that a lot of people do. I mean, we all lose somebody. But our guys, like they're kind of secret." 

Reminding us of those that sacrificed their lives for our freedom, never leaving a man behind.

"Unfortunately, we always have to add, bring in new families every year, which just, you know, it's the price of freedom, and it means it's sacrificed by some of our nation's finest," O’Shea said. "But this event reminds those families, the sacrifice of their son, their brother, their husband, it is never forgotten." 

Registration to swim in this event opens late summer and fills up quickly.  For more information on registration or donations, visit here.