"How do you thank people like that?"- Brian Harman asks for prayers for hero in a coma who saved his child's life
Brian Harman's six-year-old son was involved in an accident over a month ago. While drowning, a family friend stepped in to help save the young child but remains in a coma to this day. Harman has asked everyone to send prayers for them.
While Harman was playing at the Macau Open, his son went swimming with a boogie board in the ocean. A rip current pulled him in, and family friend Cathy Dowdy went to save him.
She suffered an injury then, too, and another beach-goer, Crane Cantrell had to jump in and rescue both of them. Cantrell is fine, but Dowdy is still in a coma now.
The 2023 Open Championship winner said via Golf Monthly:
“Obviously our world down here was kind of turned on its head. I don’t really know what I wanted to kind of say other than I wanted to use whatever platform I have to bring awareness to what Cathy did, what Crane did."
Harman brought this up at his latest pre-tournament press conference, which occurred about four weeks after the initial accident. He applauded their decision to put everything aside to try and save his son from a precarious situation, saying they "disregarded" themselves for his son's well-being.
"How do you thank people like that? I don’t know other than to just say what you think. I think that bravery and doing something like that for people who aren’t your blood is just the most beautiful thing you can do in this life.”
A GoFundMe was set up to support Dowdy in her coma. It was initially set to aim for $20,000, but it's currently nearing $80,000 in total donations.
Brian Harman thanks community for support in wake of son's accident
Brian Harman and his son are doing fine today, but family friend Cathy Dowdy is still in a coma. She is currently in a hospital about 90 miles away from where the Harman family lives in Georgia.
Harman said via Golf Monthly:
"The outpouring of support we've gotten from Glynn County and the St. Simons community is another one of the most touching things I've ever experienced."
He went on:
"And for all we've been through and for how terrible it's been for Mike and Christina and Nicole, they're family for us and we're with 'em till the end. I appreciate everybody that's helped us out through all this. You know, prayers for Cathy."
Brian Harman, who will make his 13th appearance at the RSM Classic to wrap up the 2024 FedEx Cup season this weekend, implored everyone to continue to keep Dowdy in their thoughts.