I want to send our deepest gratitude to the Lima police officers who not only saved our neighbor, Tonya Brown, but possibly the life of my husband, Steve.
We were awakened shortly after 3 a.m. Thursday to frantic pounding on our front door. Steve leaped out of bed, answered the door, and saw our neighbor Tonya crying and screaming that her house was on fire and the boys were upstairs. I immediately called 911 and Steve ran over to the house.
Steve and Tonya ran into the house and Tonya disappeared into the smoke.
Steve tried to stay low to the floor for air and crawled up the steps. He yelled out to Elijah and Vinny as he could hear them crying for “Mommy.”
Elijah came to him first and Steve carried him to the front porch. Steve went back in, crawled up the steps and called to Vinny — he came to him and Steve carried him to the front porch with Elijah.
As I went to our house to get a blanket to cover the boys, I saw Tonya hanging out the upstairs window, smoke billowing out and screaming, “I can’t breathe.”
Steve was going back into the house to help her when the police raced up and pushed him back.
They took over, risking their own lives and quite possibly saved Steve’s life as well as Tonya’s.
God and his angels were with all of us that day. I’m forever thankful for the safety of my husband, Tonya, the children, and the Lima police officers for this Thanksgiving.
