News Post

Water Guardian Badge Impacts Local Community

July 28, 2016 | Community Impact

Colin’s Hope exists to raise water safety awareness to prevent drowning, and does so by promoting the appointment of an adult “Water Guardian” and the use of the Water Guardian Badge. The role of a Water Guardian is to actively supervise any children in the water, and wear the pictured Water Guardian Badge on their wrist as a physical reminder that they are on duty. If the current Guardian needs to take a break, they can remove the badge, and hand it over to another adult. It is our belief that this tool, along with multiple layers of protection, can save many lives.

Over these summer months, Texas has seen a swift increase in the number of drowning incidents. Currently, our state has lost 74 children to a fatal drowning, and it is estimated that at least 6-7 times more children have experienced a non-fatal drowning. Though it is tough to read these statistics, there are many lights of hope and positive moments to share.

Recently, a local community member and mother, Amanda Creager, reached out to Colin’s Hope via Facebook to tell her story of a Water Guardian Badge success.

“I wanted to thank you all for the outreach you all have done in the area schools this year. My daughter, a student at Elm Grove Elementary in Buda, was so excited to bring home her Water Guardian bracelet and to go over all the safety tips with me. Fast forward maybe a little over a week and we’re attending the first pool party of the season on Friday at a friend’s backyard pool. I noticed one of the other moms was wearing the Water Guardian bracelet in the pool. When she got out of the pool to use the restroom, she passed the bracelet to another mom and made sure she was “ready for duty” as the responsible party. Eventually, the bracelet was passed to me. During my time on watch, I caught a glimpse of one our younger kids just below the water’s surface. The more I looked, it dawned on me that he was about to drown. I was able to pull him from the water and make sure he was OK. We had 8 kids and 5 adults and I was the ONLY one to happen to see this boy struggling to get above the surface among the chaos of children’s laughter and splashing. As traumatic as the experience was for me, I am SO thankful I did notice him! Not 20 minutes later, my own 20-month old, who was at my feet by the edge of the pool, fell in while I was talking to another adult. It only took 1/2 a second of distraction! The universe was again shining on us as another adult screamed to notify us immediately that he had fallen in and we were able to pull him up quickly. Phew! As we were leaving the party one of the moms gave me back the Water Guardian bracelet and informed me that it was MY daughter who brought the bracelet and gave it to another adult with instructions to be watchful. Clearly your message made an impression on her and in-turn saved a life or two that day. I’m grateful for our happy outcomes and our increased appreciation for vigilant eyes around the pool this summer. I am also so grateful for what you all do in the schools to educate our children. Please know that it IS working and making a difference. Thank you!”

Amanda Creager

Parent at Elm Grove Elementary

Buda, Texas

THANK YOU, Creager family, for being Ambassadors of water safety in your community and sharing your knowledge with those around you!

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