CORAL SPRINGS, Fla. – Over the weekend, 3-year-old Angelique Pache drowned at a community pool in Lauderhill while her parents were just steps away. It's a loss that Cassie McGovern knows all too well.
In August 2009, McGovern's 19-month-old daughter, Edna Mae, drowned in their backyard pool in Coral Springs.
"This happened to me. I don't want it to happen to you," she said.
Her family starting the McGovern Foundation to help families give their children lifesaving swim lessons.
McGovern said tragedy struck in an instant.
"It was a matter of minutes. I was sitting with her in the kitchen, walked out to answer a question," McGovern said. "I came back, and she wasn't there."
McGovern said swimming lessons and lifesaving techniques don't get enough attention from busy parents.
"So many parents that invest in dance lessons or get them into football, but there is a disconnect when it comes to swimming lessons," McGovern said. "We need to start a generation of swimmers."
For families who can't afford lessons, the McGovern Foundation provides scholarships.
McGovern also works with Broward County, spreading awareness about drowning prevention -- a message she wishes she had heard nine years ago.
"I would give anything to have her back, anything to change what happened," she said. "But I also feel it's a privilege to be out there and preventing other families from going through what I went through."
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