Boy, 13, dies after being underwater

GRAND HAVEN, Mich. (WOOD) - A 13-year-old boy who was pulled from Lake Michigan after being underwater for about 30 minutes Friday, died early Saturday, said the president of the Grand Rapids Crew.

Police said Christian Ouding, who is from Grand Rapids, was celebrating the end of the season with his soccer team, Grand Rapids Crew Juniors , at a private home on Lake Michigan. The boy's father noticed him struggling in the water and tried to save him when a big wave came and knocked the boy out of sight.

The staff at the Christian Reformed Conference Grounds in Grand Haven then called 911.

The Ottawa County Sheriffs Department told 24 Hour News 8, the Dive Team found Ouding unresponsive in 10 feet of water.  He's believed to have been under water for 30-40 minutes. Ouding was still unresponsive when emergency crews took him to a local hospital.  He was then flown to Helen DeVos Children's hospital.

Friday night, doctors told the family the 13-year-old's body was healthy, but showed no brain activity.

Grand Rapids Crew President Chip Hoebeke told 24 Hour News 8 Ouding died early Saturday.

Hoebeke called him a standout player, and provided this statement Friday night:

We are all in a state of shock. Our U14 boys were celebrating the end of their year with a beach party. This young man in particular had a tremendous season and has been invited to several national ID camps. As successful as he is on the field, his character separated him off the pitch too. He’s the sort of young man you hope is still around when your daughter get older, pure class. It doesn’t seem possible to go from there to where things stand now.

As a club, collectively we’re praying for him and his family. The constant reminder going around our club family via email is to remember to give your kids a hug every chance you get.

The Grand Rapids Crew Juniors posted this on their Facebook page: In a show of support for Christian and his family, Saturday morning, June 16 at 8:30 a.m. we are asking club members and friends to join us at MVP fieldhouse. We will have a moment of silence for Christian and those in attendance will be organized to form his number, 21, on the fields. We will take a picture of this from the roof of the fieldhouse for Christian and his family.

The MVP fieldhouse is located behind the Cascade Meijer at 5435 28th Street.

"It's a reminder of how quickly this great body of water we have here can turn dangerous on you," said Lt. Lee Hoeksema from the Ottawa County Sheriff's Department. "You gotta know your swimming skills, if you're not sure, make sure you swim with a buddy and use a lifejacket and parents need to stay alert to what's going on."

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Visitation is scheduled for June 19 from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Monroe Community Church in Grand Rapids, according to Christian's obituary.

Friends and soccer players are encouraged to attend the evening visitation. Attendees who were on a soccer team are asked to wear their jerseys. Others are asked to dress casually in bright colors.

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Monroe Community Church
800 Monroe NW
Grand Rapids, MI, 49503