Ryan Jennings, beloved coach and father from Maine, drowns saving children from rip current off Juno Beach, Florida
JUNO BEACH, Fla. — Ryan Jennings, a beloved coach and father from Maine, died while rescuing his children from rip currents during a family vacation in South Florida.
Geraldine Ollila, a family friend, described the Jennings family as an ideal family.
“Truly, if there is a love story to be told, an ideal family that we all look up to, to emulate, to be like, it is the Jennings family,” Ollila said.
Ryan Jennings, his wife Emily, and their three young children were visiting Ryan’s parents in South Florida this week.
Wednesday afternoon, the family was on Juno Beach.
Two of the children were caught in rip currents while swimming in the ocean.
Witnesses said Ryan immediately swam after them, saving the children but losing his own life in the process.
“He was a hero. He saved the kids. It was exactly who Ryan Jennings is: an amazing, amazing human being,” Ollila said.
Emily Jennings recently learned she is pregnant with their fourth child.
The family remains in Florida for now, but Ollila said neighbors in Maine are ready to support them when they return home.
“They’re in so much pain and deep into grief, but they will overcome it together, and they will be surrounded by a community that loves them,” Ollila said.
Ollila has set up a GoFundMe account to raise money to help Emily raise the children.
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