Why Hannah’s Foundation?

On 10 December 2004 my wife Katherine and I were blessed with the arrival of our little princess – Hannah Isabella Alyson Grace Plint. For the next 34 months we experienced so much happiness and joy from Hannah – We almost lost her at seven months of age with a serious chest infection and other medical complication to a haemangioma on her back, where she ended up in the Mater Hospital in Brisbane. She recovered well and was an inquisitive and fast learning young girl.

Hannah was the apple of her father’s eye and a shadow beneath her mothers feet. With the arrival of her young brother Harry she had a younger brother to go with her older brother – Andrew and older sisters Kelsi and Jordan.

In October 2006 we moved to Laidley about 1 hours drive from Brisbane onto a small acreage property, Hannah was in her element. She had so much space to run around in and to play with the dogs / cats / chickens and neighbours horse. Hannah continued her helping ways with her mothers business in making modern cloth nappies and helping daddy in his constructions and work around the yard.

Many occasions she would go and stay with her Grandma and play with her cousins James & Robert at Grandmas house and at Uncle Polly and Aunty Kevins house. Hannah was so full of life and energy. All she wanted to do was to help people and to learn what they were doing. She had such an interest in whatever anyone was doing and was always watching and helping.

On 4 October 2007 we tragically lost her. Hannah was due to go swimming with Katherine after Mummy had changed Harry’s nappy. Unfortunately she didn’t wait and do what she was told and went and carried a plastic chair to the pool gate, put it next to the latch opened the gate and entered the pool area. What happened after that is known only to Hannah and the angels.

Less than 3 minutes later Hannah was found in our pool by Katherine who performed CPR until the Queensland Ambulance arrived, they took Hannah to Laidley Hospital where unfortunately she wasn’t able to be revived and she has become an Angel who was loved in life and forever in our hearts.

In the days that followed my wife, family and I were blessed with the support of family, so many friends and work colleagues right through to the Commissioner of Police - Mr Bob Atkinson. Even with the support networks of the Queensland Police Service and Queensland Police Union the realisation of every parents nightmare was overwhelming. My wife and I went searching for a drowning support network. We were shocked to find that none existed within Australia and the only existing support group was a Drowning Support Network based in the United States. In a country such as Australia which is surrounded by water and many of our leisure activities centre upon water there was no Drowning Awareness Day.

The grief of Hannah’s passing was still very raw and we were trying to reach out for help from others who had been through and experienced what we were going through. We had done everything right. We had the proper latches on the pool fence, we watched our children, we knew CPR. Why had this happened to us and to such an adorable wonderful child who only bought pleasure to her family and friends.

In the days that followed Hannah’s passing we came to realise that her life although so short has impacted on so many people. Both her mother and I knew that we must do something to honour the memory of her passing and to do all that we can do to raise awareness and to prevent drownings. This would be her legacy and our mission.

We have hit many hurdles in our quest to set up Hannah’s Foundation but with the support we received from our family, friends and work colleagues along with the help of complete strangers we manged to get the foundation running and will be working to Raise Awareness and Prevent Drownings here in Australia and spread her message across the world.

 

Andrew & Katherine PLINT

31 January 2008