A Texas boy abandoned at a fire station as an infant got a
special wish for his 10th birthday: Meeting the firefighter who
saved him.
On Thursday evening, Koregan Quintanilla celebrated his
recent birthday by meeting Arlington, firefighter Wesley Keck,
riding on a fire truck and touring the station.
Koregan was left at the station in 2002 under Texas' Baby
Moses law, which allows a parent to leave an unharmed infant up to
60 days old at a fire station or hospital with no questions
asked.
Child Protective Services then
takes custody of the babies. All states have similar laws, but
Texas was the first to create one, signing it into law in 1999. It
took effect in 2001.
Mr Keck said he was excited
about seeing the boy for the first time since finding a baby
carrier outside the station on a cold November
morning.
'It was probably around
freezing that morning, maybe a few degrees warmer,’ he recalled to
KHOU
Catching sight of the baby
carrier, he did a 'double take' before rushing outside into that
cold.
'I was worried what I was
going to see when I pulled the blanket back,' he
admitted.
Moving it aside anyway, he saw
the baby, 'sound asleep.'
He gently picked up the
carrier and walked inside to tell his colleagues the shocking news,
he said.
'I announced that somebody had
left us a gift,' Mr Keck said on Thursday. 'I checked him out, and
he seemed fine. I don't remember him crying. I held him, and he
slept a lot.
'I have four kids, and some of
the other firefighters are fathers, so taking care of babies wasn't
new to us.'
Koregan's mother, Rebecca
Quintanilla, said the 10-year-old has always known he's adopted and
for years has watched TV news footage from when he was found at the
fire station.
This year, when his teacher
asked students where they wanted to go more than anywhere else in
the world, Koregan said 'my fire station,' his mother said. So, she
tracked down the firefighter and planned a reunion.
He's a very good kid, kind,
shy, and he's always giving things away to people,' Mrs Quintanilla
said. 'After talking to Mr Keck, I think he's like that. I do
believe Koregan has some traits from Mr Keck, although he just
spent a few hours with him.'
Since 2009, 43 babies have
been dropped off at fire stations and hospitals in Texas, the most
recent figures available, said Marissa Gonzales, a spokeswoman for
the Texas Department of Family and Protective
Services.
Mrs Quintanilla, who has five
other children, all adopted, said she is grateful for the Baby
Moses law.
'It's amazing, because there
are terrified women who have no idea what to do,' she said.
'There's a window of time when they can make a
choice.'
Mr Keck, a firefighter for 26
years, agreed.
'I'm happy the way it turned
out,' he said. 'I didn't do anything special. I happened to be in
the right place at the right time.'