Firefighter attends graduation of the baby he rescued 17 years ago

When Dawnielle Davidson of Wenatchee, Washington crossed the stage at her high school graduation on Saturday, the firefighter who saved her life 17 years earlier was there to cheer her on.

Davidson was an infant when Mike Hughes, a retired local firefighter, made front page news for rescuing the baby from her crib inside a burning home and delivered her to safety, Seattle’s KOMO News reports.

Seven years later, Hughes tells KOMO that he was compelled to check in on Davidson via Facebook. The two have remained in contact ever since, and recently Davidson reached out to invite him to her graduation ceremony.

“It’s really emotional,” she said through tears. “I don’t really know how to describe it. They’re happy tears just to realize that, you know, some things could have gone wrong.”

“She started out a little bit rough, and then she’s made it all the way through high school now, so she’s successful and happy,” Hughes said.

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