Coach Lisa Ferguson is a Florida native, the wife of a Marine, and the mother of three children. Her now adult children began swimming before their first birthdays and continued to competitively swim throughout high school. Her youngest daughter, born in 2011, mastered survival skills at five months of age!

Coach Lisa is passionate about drowning prevention and the healthy, lifelong sport of swimming. She believes continual aquatic education is vital not only for her students, but for herself as well. Her teaching career began in 1998. From 2003 to 2010 she certified and taught for PediaSwim at Southwest Aquatics among 5 of the most experienced instructors in the State of Florida. In 2004 she began expanding her experience, education and certifications as an aquatic educator and competitive swim coach.

Between 2004 and 2010 she assisted central Florida swim teams such as Daytona Beach Speed, Brevard Swim Club, Parrish Swimming, and the Southwest Stars. With each team, Coach Lisa always chose to coach the youngest competitors with emerging stroke development and racing strategy. A brief residency in coastal North Carolina gave her the opportunity to coach the local Carteret Currents age group team as well.

This education and experience; coupled with her love of children, attracted Coach Lisa to Swim Life in 2010. Under the leadership of Kelly Wiggins, a 33 year veteran in the drowning prevention arena, a student-directed and multifaceted approach to each lesson, at every age and skill level, has been updated, expanded, improved, and continually refined as the Swim Life methodology.

Coach Lisa’s Swim Life, Inc. students experience a cycle of guiding, supporting, and encouraging through their swimming skill acquisition. Every small success and milestone achieved by her swimmers is celebrated. Whether it be a survival swim student, a stroke development student, swim team member, or parent, Coach Lisa strives for an experience that is unique and customized to the needs of each particular student and family.

The first Swim Life developmental swim team was formed in Sept of 2014 in Okinawa, Japan under the leadership of Coach Lisa. That team evolved into the competitive Kadena Swim Team in just 18 months and is now owned and operated by Kadena Aquatics/Outdoor Recreation.

Lisa is excited to bring the Swim Life program to Riverside, serving all of Jurupa Valley in January of 2026, and will be training a carefully chosen and highly qualified individual to continue Swim Life instruction ongoing for the benefit of Jurupa Valley families.