Feeling their pain. Olympic skier Bode Miller’s wife, Morgan Miller, reacted to news that Granger Smith and his wife, Amber Smith, lost their 3-year-old son River in a drowning accident nearly one year after the Millers’ daughter Emeline drowned at 19 months.
“My heart breaks,” Morgan, 32, captioned a photo on Instagram Stories of Granger, 39, with his late son. “Another baby gone too soon.”
The professional volleyball player followed it up with a PSA for all parents. “Add layers of protection,” she wrote, sharing a photo of a solar-powered CORAL Manta drowning detection system.
Morgan, who enrolled son Easton, 8 months, in swimming lessons at 6 months, also advised teaching little ones to swim early on. “It can truly happen to anyone,” she captioned a video of a baby being gently placed into the water before floating on its back. “I urge you to make your babies safer.”
A rep for Granger confirmed to Us Weekly on Thursday that the Smiths’ youngest child died in a drowning accident at the couple’s home. (The pair also share daughter London, 7, and son Lincoln, 5.)
The musician released a statement on Instagram on Thursday, June 6. “I have to deliver unthinkable news,” he wrote. “We’ve lost our youngest son, River Kelly Smith. Following a tragic accident, and despite doctor’s best efforts, he was unable to be revived. Amber and I made the decision to say our last goodbyes and donate his organs so that other children will be given a second chance at life. Our family is devastated and heartbroken, but we take solace in knowing he is with his Heavenly Father.”
Amber, 37, also shared the tragedy on Instagram Thursday, writing, “Nothing can prepare a mother to deliver this kind of news.”
Radar Online reported Thursday that 911 was called to the duo’s Georgetown, Texas, home on Wednesday, June 5.
Emeline Miller drowned in a pool in a similar manner in Coto de Caza, California, on June 9, 2018.
Though paramedics were called to Bode and Morgan’s home and Emeline was rushed to the emergency room, they were unable to revive her.
“We are beyond devastated,” the Olympian, 41, wrote on Instagram at the time. “Our baby girl, Emmy, passed away yesterday. Never in a million years did we think we would experience a pain like this. Her love, her light, her spirit will never be forgotten. Our little girl loved life and lived it to it’s [sic] fullest everyday.”
Three months later, they welcomed Easton. (The couple also share son Nash, 4. Bode is also the father of Neesyn, 11, with Chanel Johnson, and Samuel, 6, with Sara McKenna.)
The couple have since become advocates for swimming safety. Both Morgan and Bode appeared on the Today show to discuss the topic in April. “I saw 6-month-old babies and 1-year-olds and 16-month-olds, 19-month-olds, swimming — that could’ve been Emmy,” Morgan said of her son’s swimming lessons. “That should’ve been Emmy. And it was that easy to commit to one session of what we’re doing now. It would’ve changed everything.”
Added Bode: “Being a parent is inherently scary. You’re worried about your food or your screen time or whatever, but the number one thing that can take your child, where none of that stuff is relevant, is drowning.”
