On April 24, 2016, my world crashed. My 16 year old son, Robert Dewight Ballard, Jr., was suppose to be hanging at a friends house when someone suggested going  to the lake. Once at the lake a a group of unsupervised teens decided to swim to the next island. Approximately seventy-five feet from the shoreline my son drowned. It took over a hour for the the other children to receive emergency medical assistance. There were no lifevest made available even after paying an entry fee into the lake. 

Robert was an outstanding honor student and a true competitor on the football field, playing cornerback, #29, for Greenbrier High School in Evans, GA. He had hopes of playing for the University of Georgia and becoming a physician.

Unfortunately, my son's premature death destroyed his dreams. Georgia ranks #13 in drownings, and over half of those occur in lakes. I am asking for our senator and state legislators to create Robert's Law, mandating all public lakes within the state of Georgia to:

●      require all public lakes  to have Coast Guard-approved life jackets available 

●      make buoys and no swimming areas highly visible.

●      require adult supervision for minors while swimming and entertaining.

●      maintain on-duty lifeguards.

●       require water safety in health education class.

Georgia has boating laws to help protect our children, but there are none protecting our children while swimming and entertaining at lakes.

My prayer is that no mother or family will endure this unimaginable agony due to an accidental drowning within a lake. Please help me form Robert's Law by signing the petition and writing to our local house representative. Thank you for your continued love, support, and prayers.

Sincerely,

Lakeya Collins