Our little brother Adam drowned in our backyard pool at 14 months old, with a house full of family. He survived. We’re his brother and sisters, and this is everything we wish we’d known.
From Adam’s brother and sisters · Blair County, Pennsylvania
#1 cause of death for kids ages 1 to 4 · CDC (opens in a new tab)
Source: CDC, 2026 (opens in a new tab)
#1 cause of death for children ages 1 to 4. It’s also preventable.
Learn the layers of protection →Source: CDC for “#1” (opens in a new tab)
70%+ of children who die in a pool or spa drown at a home: their own, a grandparent’s, a friend’s or a neighbor’s.
Check your home →Source: CPSC, 2026 report for “70%+” (opens in a new tab)
83% lower odds of a child drowning when the pool is fenced on all four sides. Don’t let the house be the fourth side.
How to fence a pool →Source: Cochrane review for “83%” (opens in a new tab)
Every line on the right is from Adam’s story, and the pattern isn’t only ours. Drowning is usually silent (American Academy of Pediatrics (opens in a new tab)), and most young children who drown in a pool weren’t expected to be anywhere near it (CPSC (opens in a new tab)).
You don’t have to do everything at once. Start here, then work through the rest of the layers.
More than 70% of children who die in a pool or spa drown at a home. CPSC, 2026 report (opens in a new tab)
Fence it on all four sidesGrandparents’, neighbors’ and friends’ pools count too. More than 70% of children who die in a pool or spa drown at a home, including the homes of family, friends and neighbors. CPSC, 2026 report (opens in a new tab)
Print the half-page for grandparentsMost child drownings inside the home happen in the bathtub, and a toddler can drown in as little as an inch or two of water. American Academy of Pediatrics (opens in a new tab)
Close off the waterWater colder than 70°F can make anyone gasp and lose control of their breathing. National Weather Service (opens in a new tab)
Water safety in PennsylvaniaAdam slipped out during graduation week, with family in from out of town and nobody expecting him anywhere near the pool.
Take the Water Watcher pledgePull each door to the pool almost shut. Does the alarm still sound?
Walk away from the pool gate. Does it close and latch by itself?
Empty buckets, coolers and kiddie pools, and flip them over.
Look up an infant and child CPR class near you.
Decide who will be the Water Watcher the next time kids are near water.
Pools, hot tubs, ponds, bathtubs, even buckets. Every second counts. Call 911 and start CPR if you’re trained.
What to do in an emergency →Adam is our little brother. He’s 10, the youngest of five, a music lover with a smile worth waiting for. At 14 months old, during a busy week of family celebrations, he slipped quietly out the kitchen door and into our backyard pool. After 90 minutes without a pulse, his heart started beating again. A neurologist told our mom he would never hear her again. Within weeks, he was crying when she read to him. His smile took 15 months to come back, and it was worth every single day.
Adam is a drowning survivor, and he’s the reason for all of this. We’re his big brother and sisters, and in 2020 we started Because of ADAM so what happened in our backyard doesn’t happen in yours.
A timer here counts how long you’ve been reading this page.
Adam was out of sight for about three minutes.
“It takes a second. It literally takes a second.”
Our mom, Shannon, to WJAC-TV in 2017
It only takes a second to latch a gate, switch on an alarm, or put down the phone, too.
Our door alarms went quiet when a door was pulled almost shut but never latched. Gates get propped open. Adults look away. Each layer you add catches what the last one misses. Turn them on and see the difference.
Our dad became a certified Infant Swimming Resource (ISR) instructor after Adam drowned. ISR teaches babies and toddlers to roll onto their backs, float and breathe if they ever end up in the water alone, the lessons Adam never got the chance to take.
Our family recommends ISR specifically: not just any swim lessons, and not “mommy and me” water play. The day it counts, there’s no parent in the water. Why we recommend ISR
Why this is personal
Adam’s nearest ISR instructor was two hours away.
After Adam drowned, our dad became one. Wherever you live, ISR’s map lists every certified instructor near you.
“Skills before thrills. No matter the cost, the time commitment or the distance, sometimes there are no do-overs.”
Our mom, Shannon
Many drowning prevention groups were started in memory of a child who died. Ours was started for one who lived. If your child came home from a drowning, there’s a page here for you, and a family behind it.
Promise to be the one adult whose only job is the water, and print your card.
Cornhole in Duncansville, blue shirts every June 5, and a tent with a “Never swim alone” poster. Come meet the village.
Everywhere
May is National Water Safety Month, right before swim season. It’s the perfect time to check your layers of protection, sign up for swim lessons and CPR, and take the Water Watcher pledge.
Add to my calendar: National Water Safety MonthTake the pledge about National Water Safety Month