A woman's attempt to reconnect with the boy her mother died saving from drowning in the 1990s went viral after launching a heartfelt social media search for closure and understanding.
On July 24, 1993, Trudy King tragically lost her mother when she saved a young boy and attempted to save his sister from drowning.
Taking to the New Mexico Reddit community, a user who goes by “chickenfeathers1987” posted earlier this week that their friend’s mom, Anne Michelle Savidge -- known as “Chelley,” had “saved the boy but died when she went back for the girl.”
The Redditor added: "She desperately wants to meet the boy if he is still alive."
Trudy King lost her mother when she saved a young boy and attempted to save his sister from drowning, and Trudy is now trying to find the boy
Image credits: www.tiktok.com
“Her family relocated across the country so all her research is remote.”
Little is known about the incident itself, but the following information was shared with the online community in the hopes that other Redditors could help:
- She was either in Colorado or New Mexico at the time of the incident
- She was likely on Native land on a reservation while swimming
- The family did come to her funeral
- We currently cannot find an obituary
Image credits: lifewithmoodytrudy
Trudy, who is (according to her social media) a private chef, teaching chef, performer, and mom, took to her Instagram page to share the same video that had been shared by her friend on Reddit.
Trudy’s post ignited heartwarming responses, but one person’s comment particularly stood out, as they wrote: "I was there that day.
"I loved your mom with all my heart and still do."
Anne Michelle Savidge, known as “Chelley,” drowned on July 24, 1993, at Morgan Lake in New Mexico
Image credits: lifewithmoodytrudy
“I was five years old.
“If you ever want to reach out and find out about your mom from the perspective of someone who was a small child at the time, I would be happy to tell you everything I remember.
“I remember a lot for having been so little.
"Your voice reminds me of hers."
Image credits: lifewithmoodytrudy
In another post, Trudy provided more information about the incident, clarifying that the little girl was called Gillian Clark, and she had drowned at Morgan Lake in New Mexico with her mother.
Truy wrote: "They went out to swim that day, and nearly hadn't as they ended up helping get someone's car out of the sand for a few hours, but my Chelley said ‘I'm not leaving until I get a swim in’ and her friend Sherri, her husband, children, and myself all stayed.
"This is a lake that is used to cool down a power plant, its water is warm which makes drowning more likely, also a popular swimming hole."
"The children ended up in a strong current that my mother was aware of, given that she knew the lake well," Trudy explained
Image credits: lifewithmoodytrudy
“The children ended up in a strong current that my mother was aware of, given that she knew the lake well, and swam there often.
“She ran into the water shouting for help, at which time some bystanders thought it was a joke, but it turned out to be very real.
"A float was brought to my mom, [and] as she tugged the boy to shore, the small Gillian Clark walked into the same current and was swept away."
“Gillian was brought out of the water to her stepfather, who upon seeing her limp body and blue face, gave her back to the current.
“Chelley handed the boy off and went back to grab Gillian's body and in that moment, she was taken too.
“They were both pulled out of the water as quickly as possible, my mother first, and CPR began until she was taken in a helicopter where she was officially pronounced dead.
“I watched the majority of this from the shore until Sherri's two children took me back to the car.
“The boy she saved is the last person who ever saw her face, who ever heard her voice.”
You can watch Trudy's video below:
Trudy believes tracking down the boy has become her calling, and she adds: "I have huge reason to believe that I am being spiritually guided and compelled to advance this adventure and that I bear huge significance to this person I am looking for.
“Any help the indigenous clans of New Mexico can provide, especially in regards to helping me understand and remember that day both physically and spiritually, I would be so cosmically grateful.
“I'm so sorry if I mispronounced these beautiful special words that are part of your really fascinating culture.
"I'm a little shell-shocked from the amount of learning I've had to do in the last few days. Big journey."
"You should be very proud of her," a reader commented
