Miles Santiago’s life as a lifeguard started as friendly sibling competition.
It soon turned into a passion for the recent high school graduate.
“I wanted to be better than them,” Santiago said. “I became a lifeguard and here I am today.”
Santiago said, while he does have his dream job, it comes with loads of responsibility.
“It can get really stressful at some times,” Santiago explained. “As a lifeguard, we maintain our composure and we take responsibility and take the helm of things. We want to make sure that everyone stays safe.”
It is that mentality that keeps Santiago and other lifeguards always on guard.
“When we have a lot of people we put more than one guard out,” Santiago said. “We’ll make sure that all of the guards are communicating. We have our whistles and packs, our first aid kits…we also have our communication system and making sure we’re blowing our whistles when something happens.”
What started off as competition to one up his siblings has turned into a life changing and saving job.
It is a job where Santiago believes he will make a difference.
