Bryant Collins, a mechanic from Georgia, was traveling down Highway 72 when something peculiar stuck out in his periphery. He noticed the mass was coming closer to the highway, so he slowly started to press on his brakes. It wasn’t until he came to a halt that he realized what was about to enter the middle of the road: a baby.
“I didn’t think it could even be a baby at first,” said Collins. “How could it be a baby out here in the middle of nowhere? But at the same time, while I’m thinking that, my foot is mashing the break so fortunately, thank God nobody was behind me because this is one of the busiest highways in the area, if not the busiest. By the grace of God, there was not even a car coming either way.”
Collins was in complete shock at the sight of the 15-month-old curly-haired cutie just wandering the highway by herself. He immediately called 911 and informed them of the incident.
He stayed with her for two full hours as police investigated the situation. Feeling lost, confused and overwhelmed, the baby began to cry while in Collins’ care, so he pulled out his phone to play some worship music for her.
“The baby started crying. Then I turned my phone on and let the baby listen to some Gospel music, and she calmed back down,” he said. “I know gospel music calms me down.”
The two bonded over the two-hour wait and the adorable carrot top became quite comfortable in his presence. “She looked at me like she knew me or something,” said Collins.
Police discovered that the child had somehow managed to crawl 300 yards from her home through the woods and into the highway. Emergency crews arrived, and her father was arrested immediately.
Sheriff Kip Thomas said it was a miracle “that a 15-month-old can go that far from her house, into the woods, fall down an embankment, wind up near a major highway and really not get hurt that bad.”
Collins has been hailed a hero, but his criminal past would have never predicted he’d be the one to save the day. He served 10 years in the federal institution for manufacturing cocaine, but during his time there, he made a decision.
“While I was in prison, I decided I can’t come home like I came to prison,” he said. He was going to do everything in his power to turn his life around.
And he did just that. Collins is now five years clean and sober and works as an auto repairman.
When asked how it felt to be regarded as a hero for his act, Collins called it “nothing extraordinary,” as it was the right thing for anyone to do.
But he did admit that it felt refreshing to redeem his past by doing good for society.
“It made me feel good that I could you know be in society and do good,” he said with a smile. “Just as well as you can do bad, you can do good.”
See more from this inspiring story in the video below:
