An 11-year-old boy from Memphis is being hailed as a hero after he saved his family from a fire in their apartment. Young Antonio Brown woke up smelling smoke and immediately went to action, waking up his sleeping 10-year-old brother.
"I just woke him up and I unlocked the door and I told him to get out the house," said Brown. He then went back into the burning apartment to find his father. When he tried to leave, the door was too hot to touch, according to WREG. So, he came up with a new plan.
"I went back and started punching and kicking the window and then I jumped out of the window," he said. His mother, Tamika Brown-Ayers, was shocked by Brown, saying she "didn't think that an 11 year old would think like that."
The two-story drop left Brown injured; his ears were burned and he had to receive stitches from the cuts he got from broken glass. Even then, he was still thinking of how he could save his dog. Ultimately the fire was too hot for him to get back inside.
After the fire and news spread of Brown's heroic actions, the community stepped up to help. A local school paid for the family's stay in a hotel, while family friend Brittany Townsend created a GoFundMe page to help raise money for the family's recovery after losing everything in the fire.
"That's my best friend. She's like my sister," said Townsend. "I'd give the clothes off my back if I had to so I did everything in my power."
As of Wednesday, the campaign has raised almost $1,700. Brown-Ayers is grateful for the support her family has received from her community.
"It makes me feel so good that I got babies that people really care about," she said. "I got a husband and myself that people really care about. It just makes me feel good."
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