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By Olivia Johnson

A GoFundMe page has been started to pay for funeral expenses for a 13-year-old who drowned last weekend at West Point Lake.

Makayla Prather, 13, died and Prather’s grandmother, 40-year-old Stephanie Walker, is hospitalized and in critical condition at WellStar West Georgia Medical Center, according to the Troup County Sheriff’s Office.

“She loved everybody. She loved going places. It just breaks my heart not to be able to wake up and see her again,” said Shawanda Bowles, Makayla’s mother.

According to a press release from TCSO Office, on Saturday at 1:57 p.m., deputies with TCSO, along with Troup County Fire Department and Troup County AMR were dispatched to West Point Lake near the 400 black of Lower Glass Bridge Road in regards to a possible drowning involving two victims. Deputies found Walker unresponsive and Prather’s body was later recovered by dive teams.

“After speaking with our caller on Saturday, we believe one of the victims entered the water from the shoreline, became distressed, and the second victim entered the water in an attempt to help them and became distressed themselves,” said Stewart Smith with TCSO. “There was no eye witness to the incident, as our caller who had been with the two prior to the event taking place had just returned to the location when he found the adult victim in the water.”

To help with funeral expenses for Makayla, Bowles has set up a GoFundMe.

“We don’t have any life insurance. So, the GoFundMe is a place where people can contribute and send funds to help,” Bowles said.

The link below gives more information on how you can help in their time of grief.

Link: https://www.gofundme.com/f/kyla-prather?utm_campaign=p_cp+share-sheet&utm_medium=copy_link_all&utm_source=customer