Nationwide — Drake Patton, a 31-year-old mother from Chicago, and her two children, Wyatt, 6, and Jream, 1, were found dead in Lake Michigan on September 13. Her family says she battled grief but left no clear signs of what would happen.
Police recovered Jream’s body first near 57th Street after her father called for a welfare check. Hours later, search teams found Drake and Wyatt in the water near Hayes Drive. All three were pronounced dead at the scene.
Patton’s aunt, Katina Dean, said her niece had been battling mental health challenges since losing her mother in 2019. The sudden loss, she explained, left a wound that never healed. Still, she believed Drake’s pain would not reach this point.
Dean recalled that water once symbolized peace for their family. They had even gotten matching tattoos after a cruise to mark that bond. But grief reshaped what water meant for Drake. She once mentioned that she and Wyatt might one day “go into the ocean,” words her family never thought she would act upon.
“As much as we all poured into Drake, and she has a loving family and friends, it was just never enough in her mind,” Dean told Fox 32 Chicago. She also dismissed early claims that domestic issues were involved, saying autopsy results are pending but no foul play is suspected.
On the day of the tragedy, loved ones noticed nothing unusual about Drake’s behavior. But a final goodbye message was sent before she entered the water. By the time responders arrived, it was too late.
Dean shared that her niece often worried about Wyatt growing up without a mother, a fear that lingered long before Jream was born. That thought, she said, seemed to weigh heavily on her.
The tragedy has left the family shaken. Relatives and friends gathered at the lake in the days after to grieve and honor the memories of Drake, Wyatt, and Jream. Dean described the days since as “an emotional rollercoaster” but found comfort in her faith.
“I take comfort in knowing that the God that I serve has the ultimate say on where all of their souls rest,” she said.