Many teenagers think of lifeguarding as a good summer job or as a way to attend summer camp without paying exorbitant fees. Ayala Colter’s* story shines a different light on the vital importance of proper lifeguarding, water safety, and expertise in CPR

It was an opportunity too good to miss. Ayala’s high school offered the option of taking a lifeguarding class for gym, and Ayala grabbed it with both hands. To her surprise, she found the class challenging, and the teacher a real stickler for details. Did she really have to worry about every single part of the training? Apparently, she did. If a girl didn’t have every detail down pat, including every stroke, every level of endurance, and complete knowledge of CPR, Mrs. Goldsmith wouldn’t let her pass. Determined, Ayala soldiered on, even putting in extra time between classes just to be sure. At last, after a lot of grit and hard work, she received her certification, along with a tremendous sense of accomplishment.

A few weeks later, Ayala’s family flew off to Orlando, Florida on the Sunday of midwinter break. Renting an Airbnb, they enjoyed a wonderful vacation in a beautiful resort… until Thursday afternoon. Thursday was their last day before going home, and they were enjoying the balmy weather. Ayala and her mother were in the game room playing a lively game of air hockey when the relaxed atmosphere was suddenly shattered by Mr. Colter’s piercing screams.

Dropping the pushers, Ayala and her mother dashed outside.

“Chaya* fell into the pool!” Mr. Colter yelled, holding Chaya in his arms. “I had to jump in to get her out. She’s not breathing!”

Mrs. Colter grabbed four-year-old Chaya from her husband and laid her on the ground. “Ayala,” her mother yelled, “CPR!”

Ayala rushed toward her sister and gasped, heart pounding in terror. Chaya was blue, she had no pulse, and her eyes had rolled back in her head. Immediately, Ayala went into CPR mode, performing rhythmic compressions and breaths. In time, there was a good sign — liquid started oozing out of Chaya’s nose.

“Speed up the breaths!” her father urged, between yelling, “Help! We need help!”

Terror and overwhelm threatened to drag Ayala down, but she refused to succumb to her turbulent emotions. This is my sister! Shoving fear to the side, she kept pushing, kept breathing into her sister’s mouth. In, out, in, out. Adrenaline fueled her, and she did one compression after another, blew a breath, then repeated the sequence, again and again….

Mrs. Colter tried calling for help, but to her horror, she didn’t have reception.

“Breathe, Chaya, breathe,” she begged, watching one daughter work to save another daughter’s life.