Country music star Granger Smith shares heartbreaking last moments with 3-year-old son who drowned

Death of country singer's son puts spotlight on childhood drownings

Country music star Granger Smith and his wife, Amber, are opening up about the loss of their 3-year-old son, River, weeks after his heartbreaking death in a drowning accident. The couple shared an emotional YouTube video where they talked about how they're coping with the loss and thanked many for their support. 

"We are gonna search for every bit of good that we can find in this situation — you know, the worst situation we've ever been through," Granger Smith says in the video. "We're gonna constantly search for ways that good will come out of this. That's my commitment to River's legacy." 

Finding Light In Our Darkest Time by The Smiths on YouTube

Smith said he was going to take the donations from fans and hand over a $100,000 check to Dell Children's Medical Center in Austin, where River was treated before he died earlier this month. The family also donated River's organs to give other kids a second chance at life. 

He also talked about how quickly the tragedy unfolded — and what he hoped to pass on to others about his experience.

"I was outside playing with [daughter] London and the boys were playing a water gun fight," he said. "I was looking at London as she was doing gymnastics and I thought, 'soak up this moment.' I just had this thought because it's not gonna last forever. Somewhere between 30 seconds and three minutes, Amber and I are inside the pool gate doing CPR on our son."

He urged those watching his video to "love those close to you, soak up those moments, live for today, live in the present, because we're not guaranteed tomorrow." He added, "What happened that night defied all possibilities." 

"It's important to not stay dark forever," Smith said, and he announced that he would be returning to go on tour. This time, he'll be traveling with Amber and their two other children, Lincoln and London. 

"We are going to live our best life," he said. "I'm still going to do music. I'm going to go back on tour and I'm going to bring them with me." 

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