Cassius Saulsgiver was a happy kid who always woke up with a smile.

He went to bed with one, too.

“He just loved life,” said his mom, Dominique Kemp. “He just loved everything. Everybody. You could be a complete stranger and he’d warm up pretty quick.”

Two-year-old Cassius tragically died last month after he was found July 16 in an in-ground swimming pool at his grandfather’s Harrison home. The horrifying ordeal is something many parents fear.

“It’s hard because even when we got out to the park or something, I was always (watching) over him,” said Kemp, 26, of New Kensington. “Everyone was pretty diligent about keeping eyes on him.”

Kemp said she had dropped her son off at her father’s home so he could watch him while she went to work. She works at Sunnyside, a medical marijuana dispensary in New Kensington.

Around noon, Kemp received a phone call letting her know her son had gotten into the pool and had been taken to Allegheny Valley Hospital in Harrison. Allegheny County police said he had been left unattended for a brief period in the living room of the house and was able to open a sliding glass door which led out to the pool.

“No one ever thinks this would happen to them,” Kemp said.

Cassius was flown to UPMC Children’s Hospital in Pittsburgh, where he was ruled brain dead, county police said. He was on life support until his family could make arrangements.

He died July 20, less than a month before his third birthday. The Allegheny County Medical Examiner ruled his death an accidental drowning.

County police said once their investigation is complete they would consult with the Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office to determine if any charges are warranted.

Mike Manko, spokesman for Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr., said his office is reviewing information provided by county police, but he did not have a time frame as to when that review would be complete.

Kemp said different scenarios have been playing in her mind since the tragedy occurred.

“What if I was able to stay home? What if I didn’t need a job or needed to work all these hours? Maybe if daycares were open. … That’s the unfortunate thing,” Kemp said. “There’s so many scenarios. It could have been avoided.”

Kemp’s co-workers, many of whom are parents themselves, have banded together to help their colleague.

To help ease the burden of funeral and medical costs, they arranged a fundraiser on Kemp’s behalf behind their Fourth Avenue workplace. As of early Sunday afternoon, it had raised about $3,500. The goal was $2,000.

Kemp said she is grateful for her co-workers. She cannot believe the lengths they have gone to for her and her family. She has worked at Sunnyside for less than a year.

“They knew I’m a single parent. All the time that I did have, I wanted to spend with him. All the time in the world I would want to spend with him,” Kemp said of her son.

Nicole Contreras, a friend and co-worker, said Kemp was a doting mother who went on and on about her son.

She met the boy once, when he and his mother were driving by the building. She went outside to say hello. The two were wearing matching shirts.

“He’s 2. He was going to be 3 in August. You factor all your feelings into, ‘That could have been my child.’ And I’m going to bed with mine safe, happy and healthy and she has to put hers to rest,” Contreras said. “We all took it really, really hard.”

Co-worker Allyson Benemann was at work with Kemp when she received the phone call. Benemann has four children of her own.

“I never, ever want to have to have anyone experience that again,” Benemann said. “That was just heartbreaking to hear.”

The two-day fundraiser included a silent auction and a yard sale.

People who heard about the tragedy reached out to donate baskets for the auction. The goal was 15 baskets. They ended up with 52. A local artist donated artwork for the silent auction. Big Joe’s BBQ donated pulled pork for sandwiches.

“I can’t even say ‘Thank you’ enough cause it’s just starting to become repetitive,” Kemp said.

Melissa Berisko of New Kensington stopped by the fundraiser on both Saturday and Sunday. She has a grandson who is about Cassius’ age.

“I felt terrible for the family,” she said. “I just want to do something to help.”

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