Death by drowning at Liberty Lake Day Camp: Michael Stewart is remembered

Since his birth, Michael Stewart was “eager to see the world,” his mother said.

Michael was born prematurely in the 23rd week of his mother’s pregnancy and developed into an all-rounder. The six-year-old played basketball and baseball and was an excellent student.

On Monday, Michael attended the first day of summer camp at Liberty Lake in Burlington County, ready to add swimming to his skills. But instead, the day brought tragedy when Michael drowned in a pool at the popular Mansfield Township camp.

Michael was a beginner swimmer and was scheduled to take 13 days of individual swimming lessons starting Monday, but his first lesson was canceled, said his mother, Enjoli Stewart.

He was found unconscious shortly before 2 p.m. after drowning in a swimming pool, the Burlington County District Attorney’s Office said in a statement. A lifeguard and trained staff pulled him from the water, performed CPR and called 911, the camp’s founder said. Andy Pritikin wrote a message to the families on Monday.

The camp did not comment on Tuesday on how he might have gotten into the swimming pool unguarded and did not answer any further questions about the death or the manner of action.

Enjoli Stewart said the camp called her and told her her son had swallowed too much water and had an irregular heartbeat.

Michael was taken to Virtua Hospital in Mount Holly, where doctors attempted to resuscitate him, but he was later pronounced dead.

Stewart said the camp was not transparent about the cause of death, even after she personally confronted them about it.

He had a bright future ahead of him, but “I get the impression that the camp didn’t think the same of him,” she said.

A coroner was scheduled to perform an autopsy on Tuesday. An investigation is underway, but Neither the Burlington County District Attorney’s Office nor Mansfield Township Police and the camp have released further information about his death.

Pritikin said the summer camp resumed activities on Tuesday.

In his message Monday, Pritikin said a state-certified social worker who works full-time at the camp was offering counseling to people who witnessed the incident.

“The safety and well-being of our campers and staff is our top priority,” he said, adding that Liberty Lake has three registered nurses and 25 lifeguards with training in first aid, CPR and defibrillator use. He noted that Mansfield’s first aid unit is “just down the street.”

Families who attend the camp, as well as Enjoli Stewart, have circulated Facebook posts urging parents to call the camp and demand that the pool be closed. Pritikin emailed families Tuesday afternoon to invite them to an evening Zoom meeting to ask questions.

“Something good is going to come out of this, and I may not be able to see it right now, but I hope that whatever comes out of it will help someone else,” Stewart said.