Family tried their best to make backyard pool safe for son, 2...then tragedy struck the day after his mom's WEDDING

Daily Mail​

18-06-2025

A Virginia toddler tragically drowned in a backyard pool just one day after his mother's wedding was held at the same location - despite having a safety fence surrounding the water.
Cameron 'Cam' Massie, a two-year-old from Richmond, was playing in the backyard of a family home on the 8300 block of Bowers Lane Sunday afternoon with several young relatives, while his mother tidied up after her wedding celebration the night before, WWBT News reported.
But in a heartbreaking turn, it took only a split second for tragedy to unfold - Cam was found unresponsive, floating in the pool just steps away from the home.
The two-year-old boy was tragically pronounced dead just hours later.
'We all love him,' Shannon Clay, Cam's mother, told WTVR News. 'He was the sunshine of our life.'
Early Sunday afternoon, Shannon was straightening up the backyard of a family member's home following her outdoor wedding the night before, as relatives slowly began departing after a weekend of celebrations.
Cam was outside beneath the tent where the wedding reception had been held, overlooking the in-ground pool, playing with a few of his young relatives.
As she was sending everyone off, Shannon stepped inside to say goodbye to a few uncles, leaving the children outside for just a moment.
However, just seconds later, one of Cam's uncles frantically screamed, 'Oh my God, the baby is in the water', WTVR reported.
The mother of three, along with other family members, immediately rushed outside, pulling Cam from the pool and desperately performing CPR as emergency responders were called to the scene.
Henrico Fire Department crews arrived at the home shortly after 2:00pm and rushed the two-year-old to a nearby hospital, where he was sadly pronounced dead just a short time later.
Although the pool was surrounded with a gated fence protecting the open water, Cam still managed to get inside.
The family believes he may have been small enough to slip through an opening in the barrier, as reported by KWTX News.
Now, Cam is being remembered as a ray of sunshine in his family's life - a little boy with a heart so big, he would often share hugs with strangers.
A GoFundMe page has since been set up to support Shannon's two other children and help cover the costs of Cam's funeral expenses.
As of Wednesday morning, the fundraiser had raised over $1,000 toward its $3,000 goal.
'Look after your kids,' Shannon told WTVR, warning other parents to stay hyper-vigilant around their children.
'Don't let them out of your sight even for a split second,' she added.
Sunday's fatal accident comes just days after the husband of a famous social media influencer - who home with his toddler when he drowned in the backyard - blamed a missing pool cover and being 'distracted' by his newborn son for the tragedy.
Emilie Kiser, a popular mommy blogger on TikTok, lost her three-year-old son Trigg on May 18 - six days after he was found unresponsive in a backyard pool in Chandler, Arizona.
Brady Kiser, Trigg's father, allowed his son to go play in the backyard after eating lunch - just before the tragedy unfolded, AZ Central reported. Emilie was reportedly out with friends at the time.
He saw his three-year-old son playing near the pool - something police records note was 'not uncommon' - and while the pool was usually covered for safety, this time it wasn't.
However, the Brady was 'soon distracted' while caring for their newborn son and took his eyes off of Trigg for a mere three to five minutes.
When he turned his attention back to the little boy, he was met with a horrifying sight - Trigg's lifeless body floating in their backyard pool.
Brady immediately burst into action, jumping into the pool to retrieve their son before calling 911 to their home.
Officers performed CPR upon arrival before firefighters took over medical care.
Trigg was transported to Chandler Regional Medical Center, then transferred to Phoenix Children's Hospital, where he died on May 18 after remaining in critical condition.