ABOVE: An incredible moment at a high school graduation as a retired fire captain cheers on the girl who he saved 17 years before. Global’s Elton Hobson has more.
TORONTO – A high school graduation in Wenatchee, Washington, took on an incredible significance this past weekend.
That’s because retired firefighter Mike Hughes was in attendance to cheer on senior Dawnielle Davison as she walked across the stage to accept her diploma.
The two first met 17 years ago when Hughes pulled the nine-month-old Davison out of a massive house fire and saved her life.
“This was a special, special deal. This is a rare occurrence, the way this situation worked out,” Hughes told KOMO-News in Seattle, Washington.
The 61-year-old former Captain in the Wenatchee Fire Department recalled the day he saved young Davison’s life.
It was a rescue that very nearly didn’t happen, because as firefighters arrived on scene they had no idea a young baby was still inside the house.
“Our engine pulled up and the whole interior part of the house was burning heavily,” Hughes told ABC News today. “My partner and I went in and I got a call on the radio that they suspected somebody was in the house.”
“I went straight to the place in the house that I thought I’d find somebody. The door to the bedroom was partially open and she was in her crib just squirming, so I snatched her up and got her to the front door and handed her off to the first firefighter who was there.”
It’s an image that was immortalized on the cover of a local newspaper, with Hughes cradling the little girl as he ran from the home with the headline, “She’s Alive!”
“For some reason that doesn’t feel like me,” Davison told KOMO News about both the rescue and the image. “It’s really hard to believe some times.”
The two reconnected years later when Hughes discovered Davison over Facebook, and the two have stayed in touch ever since.
Last month, Hughes was both surprised and touched when Davison invited him to attend her high school graduation.
“She sent me an invitation so I thought, ‘By golly, I’m going,’” Hughes said. “It meant an awful lot to me. I was really happy.”
“They’re happy tears, to realize some things could have gone wrong.”
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