White House help with rescuing a small boy and paying for his funeral?-Truth! & Fiction!

The Secret Service and President Bush Helped Try to Rescue a Boy Who Drowned Near the President's Ranch Then Helped Pay for His Funeral-Truth! & Fiction!

Summary of the eRumor
The eRumor, says that the Secret Service and the president's personal physician tried to help rescue a little boy who drowned near President Bush's Texas ranch, that Mr. Bush's helicopter flew him to the hospital and that after the boy died, President Bush is suspected as having been the anonymous donor that paid for the funeral.

The Truth
This is a true story that got some fictional elements thrown in.
According to several news accounts, including an article in the Clifton Record Newspaper in Clifton, Texas from March 12, 2004, six-year-old Samuel Thomas Kettler of Coryell City did drown in a stock tank on a ranch near President Bush's ranch.
Local authorities requested help from a Secret Service special response team stationed at the ranch and it was one of their divers that found the boy.
He was transported by a military helicopter based at the ranch, but it was not the president's helicopter.
There is no report that the president's physician participated in the rescue.
The first-grader was given CPR but efforts at the scene and later at a hospital failed to revive him.
There is also no evidence that the president or any other anonymous donor helped pay for the funeral.
We contacted the Gatesville Funeral Home in Gatesville, Texas, which handled the little boy's services.
A statement issued by the director says that has been their policy not to charge for their services when dealing with a family who has lost a small child.
Other costs, he says, were paid for by the Kettler family.
He adds that the family is disturbed that the rumor is circulating.

So where did the story come from?
As the email indicates, it came from a relative of Samuel Thomas, but the portions that talk about the president, his helicopter, his physician, and his probable payment for the funeral were distortions of the facts.

A real example of the eRumor as it has appeared on the Internet:

Passing along to each of you so you know
what a truly compassionate and caring man we have in President Bush.

My first cousin, Shawn Kettler, and his wife, Suzanne, and daughter,
Laramie, lost their 6 year old son, Sam, in a drowning accident this
past Saturday (March 6th), outside Gatesville. They all live within a few miles of the President's place in Crawford TX.

Sam and a young friend of his were walking around a tank when the mud
gave way and Sam fell in the tank. The tank is a spring fed tank, and
Sam was sucked under the water into a "sink hole" where the spring came
into the tank. His little friend tried to get him out but was unable to
reach him, so he ran about 200 yards to his house and told his
grandmother. The grandmother called 911 then went to the tank, but was
unable to even see Sam.

Sam's father and a volunteer fireman arrived first and began diving
into the tank but were unable to locate Sam (I believe they said the
water was about 10 feet deep). The Deputy Sheriff that received the 911
call was at the entrance to President Bush's ranch when the call came
in. He told the Secret Service agents at the gate what was happening
and they, in turn, radioed the ranch house. President Bush told them to
"Go - take all the men and equipment you need and just go". He also
sent his personal physician and his helicopter over to the tank.

Sam was finally located and pulled from the water by one of the Secret
Service agents (I believe there were 5 agents there all total). There
was a faint pulse but they could not revive little Sam. President
Bush's doctor began working on him and they loaded him into the
Presidential helicopter and took him to Hillcrest Hospital in Waco. The
doctors there worked on him for awhile, but he had been under water for
45 minutes, so there was really no hope for his recovery. And, had he
survived, he would never have been the same.

Sam was truly a unique little boy who lived life to the fullest. And
he loved the fact that "George Bush, the President" had chosen to live
so close to his house.

When the family went to the funeral home in Gatesville on Sunday to
make the arrangements, they were told everything had been paid for by an
anonymous donor. After much "detective" work, it is believed that
President Bush is that anonymous donor.

I just wanted all of you to hear this story so you know what a true
gentleman our President is. And I ask that you pray for my family as
they deal with this tragedy. And, lastly, please pray for our country
and President Bush as he attempts to hold it all in place.

Don't ever forget to tell everyone close to you and possibly, some of
those not so close, how much you love them. Tell them everyday because
life is short and very unpredictable.

I love each of you.

Debbie Barnes