This is where it started
If you have been here a while you will have seen how I got started with this blog. I have taken my personal experience of my son’s near drowning and taken it in a particular direction.
I spend a lot of time building the Samuel Morris Foundation working hard to ensure that children like Samuel get the best possible quality of life and working hard to prevent future drowning deaths and disabilities through education and awareness. I am also maintaining my career as a professional firefighter, and working on building this blog and my associated goals for it. This means that my wife is the one that takes most of the burden of caring for Samuel (I do as much as I can, but the reality is it is NOWHERE near the level of care that Jo-ann provides).
I’m really proud of the way that my wife has dealt with such a difficult experience, and really appreciate the energy that she puts into maintaining Samuel’s health and looking after our two girls (and me!).
While this blog has been a way to explore my thinking process and often the deep recesses of my mind, Jo-ann’s blog is a way of exploring the personal and family experience. She has taken up the blogging challenge to try and let people know what the family experience is really like after a member of a family is left severely disabled by a near drowning. You can find her blog HERE.
The vast majority of people have no idea what the consequences of near drowning are and just how prevalent these events are. So I would really appreciate it if you would drop by Jo-ann’s blog take a peak at what life is like in the background of this blog and encourage her to continue to share our story. After you have read her blog I would also encourage you to visit the Samuel Morris Foundation and make a donation to help us look after children like Samuel and stop our experience happening to other families.
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Thanks Sandra, my wife certainly is an amazing women., and thanks for the blessing! Glad to see you had your children in swimming as soon as possible, one of the key pillars for drowning prevention.
I had no idea, thanks for sharing Mick! As a child I did not know how to swim and had a few close calls. When I had children I put them in swimming lessons as soon as possible. Your wife Jo-Ann sounds like an amazing person. Blessings to you both.
Sandra
Samuel got into the pool area through a faulty pool fence panel that we did not know about. Sadly this happens way too often and drowning is the second leading cause of accidental death for 0-4 year olds. Tragically for every child that dies as a result of a drowning there are at least four children admitted to hospital following non-fatal drowning incidents and almost a quarter of these will experience a brain injury that leaves them with disabilities for life. How do you stop it…
*Adult supervision – always supervise children in, on and around water
* Barriers – four sided isolation fencing of the pool, or a fenced off safe play area (for rural type properties)
* Teaching children swimming and water skills from as early an age as possible
* Having emergency plans and knowing CPR… if the unimaginable happens being armed with these skills may save a life.
Mick,
I had no idea. I'm glad I followed your link. How did it happen? It always scare me because we have a pool and I'm always fearful of my two younger ones.