Contest: Has someone you know ever saved a kid’s life?
This weekend my children were invited to a pool party. There were a dozen adults there and two teen-aged lifeguards supposedly supervising at the host’s backyard pool. I was standing 10 feet away and turned to talk to some other moms. Within minutes, my 3-year-old slipped out from the inner tube he was holding onto and sunk to the bottom the pool. I was oblivious.
A mom, who had been keeping a closer eye on the kids, jumped in to rescue him — despite the fact that she was fully dressed and seven months pregnant! When I realized what had just happened, I felt nauseous. Of course, I blamed myself for getting distracted. We’ve been swimming so much this summer, and I’m always hyper-aware in the pool. I didn’t even know how to thank the mom who saved us from a parent’s worst nightmare.
So, I’m dedicating this week’s contest to Melodie Donatelli, my pregnant hero. Whoever shares the best story of saving a child — whether it someone else who saved yours or you that saved someone else’s — will win this week’s prize (yet to be announced). Deadline is next Monday morning, and the winner will be announced Monday by noon.
Aisha covered education and breaking news for nearly ten years before joining the Lifestyle staff where she writes a "Dirty Laundry" parenting column. She is the home and family editor and wastes too much time on Facebook and political blogs. 
On July 4th of 2005 we were at my husbands family’s house. Our girls, ages 5 and 3 at the time were swimming in a pool, along with their other cousins. Both girls had their “water wings” on. We made all the kids get out for lunch. My 3 yr old was sitting right next to me, enjoying her pizza, when after a few moments I noticed that she wasnt there. I stood up and immediately went to the swimming pool, I just knew that she went back to get in. On my path to the swimming pool, I saw her water wings on the ground, and I felt sick to my stomach. By this time I was screaming for her, and the whole family was up and running towards the pool. When we reached the deck, there she was, face down and was floating on top of the water. My husbands cousin, Bob was closest to the edge, and he dove in, clothes and all, cell phone in his pocket. By the time he got her to the deck, her lips were blue, she was just about unconscious. He put her down on the deck with a thud, and it must have knocked some of the water out of her lungs, because she began to vomit. She was crying hysterically and so was me and my husband. Had it not been for Bob’s quick reaction, I honestly believe that she would have died. She was within seconds of death. I had nightmares about this for months, feeling like a terrible parent. I had often heard on the news about kids drowning with a crowd of people near by, and often thought, “how could that happen”, the parents must not have been paying attention. I now know how it happens. My daughter, who is 6, just started kindergarten last week, I owe all her childhood milestones to Bob. Without Bob, she would have been gone. Thank you Bob, for jumping in that pool that day.
About 20 years ago, my husband and I were in Omaha for the horse races. We were staying at a Holiday Inn and were in the hottub when we noticed an adorable little girl (about 3 yrs old) dressed in a red party dress, lacy anklets, black patten leather shoes and holding on to a helium balloon. A short time later we were in the pool, the 10 ft depth, when my husband looked across the pool and said “Isn’t that the little girls balloon?” It was floating in the water. I swam over and looking down into the water saw the little girl’s bright red dress; reached down and managed to catch her under the arms and pull her up. I was angry and frightened. I called out for help getting her out of the pool and everyone ignored me. Luckily she was okay when finally on the otherside of the cement edge of the pool. No parent was anywhere to be seen. An employee of the hotel came running and took her to find her mother who was out in the hallway, and who - according to the employee - yelled at the little girl for going in the pool. Mother probably never had a clue how close she came to not having a daughter. Management nor Mom never acknowledged the near drowning.
This is so wild, something similar just happened with my neighbor, Barbara. Only she wasn’t pregnant, but, she was fully dressed when she jumped in.
~wild applause~ to those who keep their eyes open and are able to respond quickly.
Looking forward to reading all of the reports of these heroes.
I have a friend whose son is a lifeguard during the summer (longtime boyscout, too). He’s saved the lives of children an adults. Both kids in the pool, and stopping to attend some car accident… he saved a guy from being paralyzed by yelling at the adults trying to help not to move the guy.