Jul. 26—Holly Wyatt can still hear the screams for someone to call 911.
She can still see the paramedics loading her son into the ambulance.
She can still remember feeling that she would not be taking him home.
On Nov. 27, 2009, Drake Wyatt drowned in an indoor swimming pool. It was his third birthday.
“I don’t want anyone else to experience that pain and grief. I don’t know how I got through it. I don’t know how I kept living. My goal now is to make sure no one else feels what I felt,” Wyatt said.
To help achieve that goal, Wyatt, a nurse at Decatur Morgan Hospital, partnered with the Decatur Morgan Hospital Foundation to create Drake’s Fund. The fund, which began accepting applications this month, will provide free swim lessons and life-saving water techniques for children in Morgan County.
“Drake’s Fund allows for something good to come out of something so tragic. Drownings happen far too often,” Wyatt said.
According to the National Drowning Prevention Alliance, more than 4,500 unintentional drowning deaths occur in the United States each year.
That tragedy struck the Wyatt family while on vacation in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.
Wyatt remembers that day — the Friday after Thanksgiving — in detail. The morning began with birthday calls from Drake’s grandmother and great-grandmother followed by a pancake breakfast.
“We were planning on what to do that day. We were going to pick up a birthday cake and open birthday presents. I had Drake’s presents in the trunk of my car,” Wyatt said. “One second he was standing right by me and the next he was gone.”
Drowning can occur in as little as 20 seconds. It is the leading cause of death for children ages 1 to 4 and the second leading cause of death for children ages 5 to 14, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“I searched all around for Drake. The next thing I knew, I heard someone scream, ‘Somebody dial 911.’ I knew it was him. I knew it was Drake,” Wyatt said. “I remember somebody was holding me as I watched the paramedics load him in the ambulance. I just knew then that he would not be coming home with me.”
In the days, months and years after Drake died, Wyatt leaned heavily on her faith.
“People ask me, ‘Are you angry at God for taking your child?’ But that’s just not how it works. The Bible says God gives and takes away, but God doesn’t take away your child. I was blessed to be Drake’s mother and thank God that I was, even if it was just for three years,” Wyatt said.
When Wyatt closes her eyes, images of the sweet and loving boy with big blue eyes, who loved Spider-Man, dressed up like the superhero and spent hours outside playing, flash in her mind.
“When he was born, I was just 20. Being a mother to him gave my life a whole new meaning. My whole life revolved around him,” Wyatt said. “I remember one point in time, sitting outside of my apartment on the stairs, holding him and just crying because we were struggling so much financially. I promised him life would get better. And it did. I got a good job and then a house. And then, he passed away.”
As a way to keep Drake’s memory alive, Wyatt, who started working in the hospital’s medical-surgical unit in 2019 after graduating from Calhoun Community College’s nursing program, approached the Decatur Morgan Hospital Foundation about sponsoring swim lessons. Drake’s Fund was born.
“This was something we really wanted to support,” said Lillie Beth Warner, the foundation’s communications and special events coordinator. “We have coordinated with Ready, Set, Splash to offer children ages 3 to 10 swim lessons at SportsFit.”
Along with providing swim lessons, where children will learn how to float and the fundamentals of swimming, the initiative will promote and educate the public about water safety, Warner said. To donate financially to Drake’s Fund or apply for free swim lessons, go to decaturmorganfoundation.org/drakesfund.
“I wanted something for Drake’s name to continue on. Drake’s Fund does that,” Wyatt said. “I am so excited and happy the foundation decided to do fundraising to help these kids. I can’t wait to see what it does and how it takes off. I want to be at every swim lesson to personally meet every single one of the kids. This is just the beginning. I want to try to help as many kids as we can and as fast as we can.”
— cgodbey@decaturdaily.com or 256-340-2441.