Before You Swim in Your Pool this Summer, Take a Moment to Read Calder’s Warning: It May Just Save a Life

Seven-year-old Calder Sloan wasn’t just a good swimmer. He was accomplished. His love and natural ability in the water had even prompted his father to playfully claim that the fish would be envious of his swimming skills. So when the Miami, FL boy dove into his family pool on April 13, 2014, no one imagined it would kill him.  

But it wasn’t drowning that robbed the life of this vivacious child so full of talent and promise. Calder Sloan was electrocuted by a pool light transformer that wasn’t grounded properly—the charge coursing through his body when he simply got too close.

As Calder’s parents reeled, struggling to make sense of an utterly senseless tragedy, it happened again. Just two weeks after their son lost his life to pool electrocution, three other young children were severely shocked in a South Florida pool that was later found to have an ungrounded pump.

Thankfully, all three survived, but the incident—so painfully close to the event that took Calder’s life—underscores the need to educate pool owners about the hidden dangers potentially submerged in the waters of their own pools. 

Hoping to do just that, Calder Sloan’s parents, Chris Sloan and Carla Kaufman Sloan, have launched www.CaldersLegacy.com, a website established to honor their son by potentially save lives through his story. 

“…we plead with you to consider having your home, pool, hot tub and light fixtures inspected by certified, qualified, and professional electrical inspector this year,” an open letter on the website reads. “We don’t want our son’s tragedy to be your tragedy. We want Calder’s death to save lives because a day you wait could be too late.”

Calder “Mr. Awesome” Sloan may no longer be here in body, but his spirit and Legacy definitely live on. A campaign started by a family friend of the Sloans has actually gone viral, with athletes, superstars, media organizations and first responders sharing his hand-drawn self-portrait globally to spread the word.

Click the link above to learn about Calder’s Legacy and warnings for pool owners.