BAKER COUNTY, Fla. — April is Hot Car Death Prevention Month, and for one Baker County family, the mission to prevent future tragedies is a year-round commitment.

Brooke and Pamela Paige are raising awareness after their 10-month-old daughter and granddaughter, Ariya Paige, died in July 2023 when she was left in a hot car for five hours by her babysitter.

“Just us getting in the car during the summer days with the new baby…now I have that fear we can’t get in a car, you know, with it being hot,” Brooke Paige, her mother, said.

Rhonda Jewell, Ariya’s babysitter, was found guilty of her death in December 2024 and was sentenced to 17 years in prison, but has since been released on bond while awaiting an appeal.

“How can you forget?” Pamela Paige, Ariya’s grandmother, added. “We will never understand that, but what we can do is to help people to not forget.”

Ariya’s death was the 16th hot car death in Florida in 2023. Now, a new state law has been named in her honor. The family said this is not just for Ariya. It’s for all the other children who were lost before and after as well.

“Once they’re gone, you can’t get them back,” Pamela Paige said.

The family urges parents to take simple precautions to avoid similar tragedies.

On a hot day, temperatures inside a car can climb to 150 degrees and higher in just an hour, so it’s important to remember to put the diaper bag in the front seat or put your phone in the back seat with the baby.

“There’s multiple things you can do to prevent from forgetting a kid in the back of a car,” Ariya’s mother said.

Ariya’s family is also partnering with local agencies to spread awareness. The Orange Park Police Department, where her father is an officer, is wearing lavender bands to honor Ariya, and multiple events are being held throughout April to spread the message.

“This is 100% preventable,” Pamela Paige said. “And if it takes us doing whatever we can in the month of April and beyond to remind people, we don’t want another family to have to go through what we went through.”