19-year-old Zaid Gracia’s wish to become a police officer came true when he was made an honorary police officer of the Houston Police Department last December.

Zaid Garcia is a burn survivor. As a toddler, he was involved in a fire accident in which 80% of his body was burned when a candle fell and their house caught on fire. The accident blinded him permanently and he also lost both of his hands.

As a little boy, he had to endure many surgeries and faced great challenges over the years as he grew older. But the fighting spirit in him never dimmed or died, even once.

“It’s been a hard path, but I healed, I want to inspire people,” he said.

Garcia had dreamt of becoming a police officer since he was 10 years old but had never really believed that he would become one. However, it would take 9 more years for his wish to be fulfilled.

His dream finally comes true

When social media influencer, Isaiah Garza came across Garcia’s story, he was inspired and wanted to help him fulfill his dream. So he tracked him down.

Garza says, “His mental willpower is beautiful and it doesn’t stop him from wanting to be who he wants to be, everything he’s been through, he still stands tall, and he just is such a brave human being and so much courage.”

Garza, was able to get in touch with the Houston Police Department to help Garcia’s dream be fulfilled.

Garcia spent a day at the academy of HPD doing everything an officer would; learning to make a traffic stop, clearing a room and taking down a suspect, meeting a K9 officer, and at the shooting range.

Later, he also got the opportunity to address the cadets at the academy. Sharing his life’s story, he told them, “I ended up proving the doctors wrong, too, you know. They thought I could not make it, but here I am”.

Trainee officers and staff were left speechless, visibly emotional, and in awe by the courage and brave spirit of the teenager as he shared his story.

“You make our jobs worthwhile and rewarding and I’ll remember your testimony about wanting to be part of law enforcement for the rest of my life,” said a prosecutor who was teaching the class of cadets to Garcia.

“Everybody who’s come in contact and had the pleasure of meeting him today has left better than before they met him,” said one sergeant.

Garcia was also given a junior police officer uniform and a certificate by Chief Troy Finner, who stated that it was a great honor to bestow on Garcia an honorary officer of HPD.

Garcia wants to help people and has a bigger dream of becoming a motivational speaker someday. His journey has only begun and he hopes to inspire more people in the future.

“In some way, you can achieve your dream,” he said. “I may be different, but it doesn’t mean that it stops me.”

Garcia’s story is a great example of a resilient spirit. It teaches us an important lesson of not taking life for granted, complaining less, and being thankful for what we have. And to never ever give up in life. source

How is Zaid Garcia Now ?

The video below is from his very own YouTube Channel called Zaid the burned survivor @zaidtheburnedsurvivor776

Subscribe to him below

https://www.youtube.com/@zaidtheburnedsurvivor776

‘You make our jobs worthwhile’: Burn survivor inspires LEOs while serving as an officer for a day

The teen, who suffered burns to 80% of his body during a fire, got to experience being an officer while inspiring Houston PD members along the way.

GALVESTON COUNTY, Texas — For 19-year-old Zaid Garcia, becoming a police officer has been a lifelong dream since he was 10 years old, but he always felt his dream might be out of reach.

“I told her, ‘Mom, I think I can do it,’” Garcia told KPRC News. “To be honest, I didn’t even believe it myself.”

His doubts stemmed from a life-changing accident when he was a young child living in Mexico.

Garcia suffered severe burns to more than 80% of his body, blinding him, and causing him to lose both hands, according to KPRC News. The serious injuries put him in a coma and resulted in many surgeries over the years.

“No one knows how but a candle fell, and when the candle fell, the house caught on fire,” he told KPRC.

When Los Angeles social media influencer Isaiah Garza heard about Garcia’s story and aspirations of becoming an officer, he tracked him down to make his dream become a reality.

“His mental willpower is beautiful and it doesn’t stop him from wanting to be who he wants to be,” Garcia told the news platform. “Everything he’s been through, he still stands tall, and he just is such a brave human being and so much courage.”

Garza contacted the Houston Police Department, and the teen spent a day at HPD’s Academy in North Houston doing everything an officer would: learning to make a traffic stop on the driver’s track, helping clear a room and take down a suspect, meeting a K-9 officer, and visiting the shooting range.

Garcia spoke to a group of cadets at the academy that day, telling them, “I ended up proving the doctors wrong, too, you know. They thought I could not make it, but here I am.”

A prosecutor who was teaching the class of cadets was touched by the teen’s story of perseverance and strength.

“You make our jobs worthwhile and rewarding and I’ll remember your testimony about wanting to be part of law enforcement for the rest of my life,” the prosecutor told Garcia during the class.

After receiving a junior police officer uniform and being presented with a certificate by Chief Troy Finner, Garcia proclaimed this day one of the best in his life.

“In some way, you can achieve your dream,” he said. “I may be different, but it doesn’t mean that it stops me.” source

Boy, 16, who survived 80% burns but was blinded raises £300,000 in huge fundraising drive to get his sight back

• WARNING: THIS ARTICLE CONTAINS CONTENT SOME MAY FIND DISTRESSING 
• Zaid Garcia, from Galveston, Texas, has been blind since accident at age of two
• Teenager lost both of his hands and five toes, and his eyes were severely singed
• Doctors covered eyes with layer of skin to let them heal and protect from light 
• But now Zaid wants to go through with surgeries to let him see his family again 
• To donate towards Zaid’s surgery, visit his GoFundMe page by clicking here

A schoolboy who miraculously survived 80 per cent burns is raising money so he can see his family and friends for the first time since an horrific accident as a toddler.

A schoolboy who miraculously survived 80 per cent burns is raising money so he can see his family and friends for the first time since an horrific accident as a toddler.

The teenager lost both of his hands and five toes, and his eyes were so severely burned that surgeons covered them with skin to let them heal.

Zaid is hoping to get his sight back through surgery to have the layer of skin removed and his eye lids reconstructed.

He says the first thing he wants to see is his best friend Julia’s ‘beauty’ and his family.

A GoFundMe page was set up by non-profit organisation Special Books for Special Kidswith the initial goal of raising £50,000. 

But supporters turned out in droves and have so far raised £300,000 for the teenager.

Zaid Garcia, from Galveston, Texas, has been blind since the age of two after a candle caught fire to his blankets as he slept and burned him alive

Zaid said: ‘I’m sharing my story to inspire people and show them that miracles do exist.

‘When I was two-and-a-half my mum took me to bed and […] a candle fell and it caught on fire.

‘I was super injured. I’ve had so many operations now that I can’t even remember. I’ll probably have more skin grafts [in the future].

‘They amputated both my hands and they took the fingers too. I have both my legs and feet.’

He added: ‘I have five toes on the left and on the right, I have one toe. I don’t walk normally. I don’t step flat.

‘The doctors shut my eyes under the skin. I don’t know why they didn’t just take them out – probably because they thought I would see in the future.

‘So my next hope is to get my vision back. I’ve been blind since the accident. If I was to have this surgery it would be the first time I’d see the world properly [since before the fire].

‘To be able to see my family again after 14 years will be good. I think it’ll be cool. The first thing I want to see would be one of my friends. My best friend from school, Julia. I’d like to see her beauty, I guess.’

The teenager lost both of his hands and five toes, and his eyes were so severely burned that surgeons covered them with skin to let them heal

After the incident, Zaid was flown from his former home in Mexico to a hospital in San Antonio, Texas, where he received the treatment for fourth degree burns, which ultimately saved his life.

When Zaid was released from hospital, his family settled in the US state, where he currently attends a school for the blind.

Zaid said: ‘It was hard growing up to be honest. People are scared of me because of the way I look and when I was young, I tried to commit suicide.

‘My mum told me that was not the right thing. I was finding it hard to fit in at school and make friends. I work hard to improve each day. I just want to be accepted.

‘When people meet my parents, my mum prepares them. She explains, “Hey, I have a child with disabilities.”

  

‘She prepares them. Of course, they get surprised, but [soon] they only care about my personality.

‘[When people meet me now], I hope that they think I’m interesting – that I’m easy to talk to. I like going out with friends and giving them time to talk with me if they need something.

‘I like to sing and sometimes I write songs or poems. I love art and playing around with pencils. I have other interests, and I hope people see that when they meet me.’

Zaid has overcome many obstacles throughout his life but remains hopeful for the future, when he plans to become a translator and motivational speaker.

He added: ‘I hope people will realise that you shouldn’t give up just because they tell you you’re not going to make it. I want to encourage people.

‘The doctors said I was going to die. There was no hope for me. They predicted that I would not be able to talk, but I’m a miracle because of that. I can say thank you in nine languages.

‘The most important thing for me is learning languages – Finish, Swedish, Danish, Chinese. In the future I want to be an interpreter and maybe a motivational speaker.

‘Spanish is my first language and I learnt English at school when I was just nine-years-old. I’m a sophomore this year. I’m working hard on my exams and I will probably go to college.

‘My parents say to me ‘be good’ when I go to school. They are very supportive and encourage me to carry on as if nothing happened.’

To donate towards Zaid’s surgery, visit his GoFundMe page by clicking here.\

 

WHAT ARE FOURTH DEGREE BURNS?

It is often thought that third-degree burns are the worst.

However, the degrees of burns can actually go higher.

Though not commonly mentioned, burn classification includes fourth-degree burns.

This is the deepest and most severe of burns and are potentially life-threatening.

These burns destroy all layers of your skin, as well as your bones, muscles, and tendons.

There is no feeling in the area since the nerve endings are destroyed.

This is because the nerves are responsible for sending pain signals to your brain. source

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The Inspiring Journey Of Zaid Garcia: Before And After Burn

All you need to know about the Transformation of Zaid Garcia, before and after the Burn.

Zaid Garcia, a 20-year-old from Texas, was a typical young man, joyful, carefree, and full of hope. His life, however, took a tragic turn in 2019 when he received third-degree burns in a fire mishap. He was struggling for his life after the accident, which left him with burns attempting to cover 80% of his body. Yet Zaid’s story is about more than simply his survival; it’s also about his miraculous metamorphosis following the disaster. In this post, we will look at Zaid Garcia’s before and after, from the person he used to be prior to the burn to the person he has become since.

Zaid Garcia

Mental Transformation:

Zaid’s mental makeover following the burn is equally astounding. The accident has already left him with physical scars, but it additionally also impacted him emotionally. He had to accept that he was no longer the same guy he was before the fire. Instead of concentrating on the past, Zaid used his experience to inspire others. He began speaking at gatherings and sharing his experience to inspire people to never give up on their aspirations.

Others’ Reactions:

Zaid’s metamorphosis has had tremendous repercussions on others. His tale has had an impact on the lives of people all across the world, and his story has served as an inspiration to many. His optimistic attitude and perseverance to overcome hardship have inspired many people to follow their aspirations, regardless of the obstacles they may face.

“Wow! Shows how one person can truly make a difference in someone’s life, but they didn’t stop there, and continue to help so many!” 

Kevin Berthia’s life was saved by an officer identified as Kevin Briggs who prevented him from jumping off a bridge Sixteen years ago when Berthia was trying to jump off the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, California, he heard Officer Briggs’ compassionate voice The young man who is still good friends with Officer Briggs, now retired, has a foundation that is helping people that are battling mental health issues Your support matters. Sustain independent journalism in Nigeria – contribute to Legit.ng. Kevin Berthia, a man whose life was saved 16 years ago when he tried committing suicide at the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, California, is now helping people that are suffering from mental health issues. According to Berthia who was 22 at the time, it was Officer Kevin Briggs’ compassionate voice that helped him open up, stopping him from jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge.

God Bless both men. Both were given journey’s through one man’s wanting to end his own life and another man, A GOOD COPS, reaching out and changing 2 peoples lives forever.
In a report by @goodnews_movement, Officer Briggs said he hadn’t experienced anything like that, little did he know that he would end up saving some 200 others, becoming known as a “guardian” of the bridge.

The officer has now retired but he’s friends with Berthia, who currently has four children and runs Kevin Berthia Organization, which is helping others with mental health battles. source

check them out now 10 Years Later, A Pair Of Strangers Revisit A Leap Not Taken

Officer, man he saved from Golden Gate Bridge suicide attempt to speak at event in Memphis

Nearly 15 years after Kevin Briggs helped Kevin Berthia stop his suicide attempt at San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge, the two will share their story with a Memphis audience.

Briggs and Berthia are the keynote speakers Tuesday morning at Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare’s annual Dennis H. Jones Living Well Network Mental Health Breakfast. As the two detail their encounter on the bridge, Briggs said he hopes the audience will learn how to talk openly about their emotional health and help someone who may be suffering.

“We bring a lot of emotion into this for a reason, as both Kevin (Berthia) and I suffer from a mental illness,” said Briggs, a retired highway patrol officer who had experience deescalating suicide attempts on the bridge.

Berthia said he felt overwhelmed that day as all the past pains he buried resurfaced all at once. To help him, Briggs said he focused on “whatever ray of hope or sunshine” was in Berthia’s life: his child.

“That would be No. 1 in most people’s minds,” Briggs said. “So I thought, ‘Let me focus on this and see where it goes.’ That’s what eventually brought him back.”

Allison White, supervisor of Methodist’s Living Well Network, said Briggs and Berthia’s message will help inform people how to help those who are struggling and direct them to the right resources. The Living Well Network, a free service, connects people with the right behavioral health provider for their needs.

The network saw referrals increase in 2019 as medical providers talk more about behavioral health with their patients and people openly discuss mental health on social media and through other channels, White said.

“If it’s under the behavioral health umbrella, it’s hard when you’re struggling to know where to turn for help,” she said. “We do that for them.”

More information about the event, which takes place at The Hilton Memphis on Ridge Lake Boulevard, is available on Methodist’s website.

If you or someone you know may be struggling with suicidal thoughts, you can call the U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255) any time of day or night or chat online.

Crisis Text Line provides free, 24/7, confidential support via text message to people in crisis when they dial 741741.

source
Max Garland

Officer is reunited with suicidal man he talked down from from the Golden Gate Bridge eight years ago
… to find he’s now happily married with two kids

• Kevin Berthia was perched on the iconic bridge ready to take a fatal leap on March 11, 2005
• California Highway Patrol officer Kevin Briggs spent 60 life-changing minutes convincing Berthia to climb back over the rail
• Pair were reunited as Berthia presented Briggs with an award at the emotional American Foundation for Suicide Prevention public service ceremony earlier this month

A San Francisco man who almost took his life eight years ago by jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge has been reunited with the hero who saved his life.

Kevin Berthia was perched on the iconic bridge ready to take a fatal leap on March 11, 2005, when he heard the voice of California Highway Patrol officer Kevin Briggs calling out to him from above.

Over 60 life-changing minutes, Briggs managed to convince Berthia, as he has done with hundreds of suicidal men and women, to climb back over the rail and give life another shot. Since that significant day Berthia hasn’t looked back and is now happily married with two children.

And this week he was able to thank the man who made all that possible. The pair reunited as part of an emotional ceremony honoring Briggs and other members of the CHP known as the Guardians of the Golden Gate Bridge, whose job it is to gently talk people like Berthia down from the structure.

‘It was phenomenal,’ Berthia, 30, told Yahoo News about the reunion at the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention public service ceremony.

On March 11, 2005 Kevin Berthia hit rock bottom.

He decided to go to the Golden Gate Bridge to end his life, but what happened on the bridge that day changed his life forever.

“I had just become new father, just recently lost my job,” Berthia explained. “So many things. All the things I didn’t handle in my life end up coming up on that day…and I felt like I didn’t have a choice. I was tired of living a lie, keeping this mask on pretending like everything was fine. Everything wasn’t okay and I just got overwhelmed and I didn’t see a way out.”

Berthia grew up in Oakland and had never been to the iconic span.

He didn’t even know how to get there and had to ask for directions.

“I was banking on whoever I asked for directions they’d say ‘Why do you want to go? No one ever asked,” he told KCBS Radio on the Golden Gate Bridge last month, as heard on KCBS Radio’s “Bay Current” on Monday. “I considered it as a done deal and I saw it as a sign.”

California Highway Patrol Officer Kevin Briggs, who became known as the “Guardian of the Golden Gate Bridge,” spotted Berthia just as he leapt over the railing. “If I had 50-foot hands to reach out and grab him. That’s what I felt like,” Briggs said. “I yelled and he reached out and caught that rail, swung around and hit it, But I didn’t know that he reached out and caught that rail. I thought he was gone.”

What happened next was captured in this haunting photo, later seen around the world.

For 92 minutes, they talked.

“You have to understand something,” Berthia said. “I never opened my eyes once. I never knew he was a cop and I never knew he was white. So this whole conversation we had…I never knew anything about him. If I would have opened my eyes conversation, the conversation would have been a little different. Where I’m from – Oakland, California – how I looked at law enforcement at the time was completely different from how I look at law enforcement now.”

Eventually, Briggs and another officer helped Berthia back over the railing and took him to the hospital.

Eight years later, the two reconnected when Berthia was asked to give Briggs a public service award in New York. That’s when Berthia believes Officer Briggs saved his life again.

“By 2013 I was up to 22 failed suicide attempts,” Berthia added.

He soon realized he wasn’t alone and that telling his story on stage helped other people.

Now, Berthia is a public speaker and a passionate advocate for suicide prevention and started the Kevin Berthia Foundation.

Two men were forever bonded over one act at the Golden Gate Bridge.. Photo credit Matt Pitman/KCBS Radio

“My whole life, I felt alone,” he said. “I’m an African American man from an African American community who doesn’t talk about mental health or suicide prevention.”

Briggs retired from the CHP in 2013 after responding to hundreds of suicide calls on the Golden Gate Bridge. He’s now a mental health and suicide prevention speaker. “The look in people’s eyes when I’d look at them over the rail I’d see some hope. But they didn’t know how and (were) tired of living in agony. That’s what drove me to do this job bet data-uri=”www.audacy.com/_components/paragraph/instances/cky83047s0024387ll7mgk5xf@published” data-editable=”text”>Berthia and Briggs might come from two different backgrounds but say they were brought together on the bridge for a reason. source

we all owe it to one another to be kind to one another and help one another. good job good cop

That’s me in the picture: Kevin Berthia on the Golden Gate bridge

‘I was convinced I was going to hurl myself off but his voice made me stop and grab the railings. That’s what you see’

Ten years ago Kevin Berthia lived in the San Francisco Bay area. He had an infant daughter who had been born premature, and the medical costs for her care climbed to nearly $250,000. He couldn’t see a way out of debt.

Berthia fell into a deep depression and went to the Golden Gate Bridge.

“Before March 11, 2005, I never even went to the bridge,” the 32-year-old said during a recent visit to StoryCorps. “I didn’t even know how to get there. I had to ask for directions.”

California Highway Patrol Officer Kevin Briggs was there that day, too.

“… I see you standing on the sidewalk,” 52-year-old Briggs said to Berthia. “You looked at me and went over that rail and I thought you were gone.”

Berthia says he “just got on that railing and turned around.”

“I was overwhelmed with everything,” he explained. “It’s like everything that I ever was bothered by, everything that I was ever dealing with came up on one day. And I just felt like a failure. All I gotta do is lean back and everything is done. I’m free of all this pain.”

Briggs thought he seemed angry.

read the whole story here Man Who Was Saved from Taking His Own Life Now Helps People Battling Mental Health Issues

In March of 2005, Kevin Berthia (pictured above right) was going through a tough time.

His daughter was born premature the year before and medical costs for her care climbed to nearly $250,000.

He couldn’t see a way out of debt, so he fell into a deep depression and decided to end his life at the Golden Gate Bridge.

That’s where he met retired California Highway Patrol Officer Kevin Briggs, who intervened and talked him down.

They spoke about that day at StoryCorps in San Francisco. source

A Compelling 2015 Presentation on Suicide-

Heroic First Responder & Grateful Survivor

TEN YEARS AGO in March 2005, Kevin Berthia wanted to take his life. He had climbed over the railing of the Golden Gate Bridge and was prepared to take a fatal jump into the San Francisco Bay when he heard a voice calling out to him from above.

It was the voice of California Highway Patrol (CHP) Officer Kevin Briggs. The two talked for 60 life-changing minutes before Berthia decided to climb back up the bridge and give life another chance.

NPR captures a poignant conversation between Kevin Briggs and Kevin Berthia
“Ten Years Later”. listen below..

He has talked more than 200 people off the ledge of the Golden Gate Bridge

As part of his job, this California Highway Patrol Officer talks to suicidal people

Kevin Briggs has been called the “Guardian of the Golden Gate Bridge”.

He got the nickname while working as a California Highway Patrol officer for more than 23 years. Briggs spent most of that time positioned on the Golden Gate Bridge.

But the job turned out to be a lot more than he originally thought he was signing up for.

When Briggs started out in 1994, he was trained to handle traffic incidents but had never received training on how to deal with people contemplating suicide.

He didn’t know at the time how pervasive the issue of suicide on the bridge was.

“There were four to six cases of suicidal folks on the bridge each and every month. And I had no idea about this, and I grew up in Marin County, which connects to San Francisco via that Golden Gate Bridge…I had no training to handle these types of situations.”

Briggs says in his first encounter with a suicidal person he “did about everything wrong that you could”.

“In the back of my mind I was thinking, ‘Am I responsible if she does jump? What happens here? I had no training in this. This is a really bad scene.’…I was afraid, I didn’t know how to handle that situation.”

Briggs says he learned a lot from the encounters that followed.

“I think my approach right from the start was wrong. Just to walk up right to those folks and start talking with them. Now what I do is I stand back and I’ll just introduce myself. I’ll say ‘Hi I’m Kevin’ or ‘I’m Kevin with the Highway Patrol, is it okay, is it alright if I come up and speak with you for a bit?’ I want to get their permission and empower them.”

Since then, Kevin has talked to more than 200 people standing on the edge of the bridge.

One of those people is Kevin Berthia.

“He was very, very, very angry,” says Briggs, “And he wanted nothing to do with me. And he kept yelling at me ‘Stay back! Stay back, if you come one step further I’m jumping!’ And he was very serious about this. In my mind, if I took one step further then he was gone.”

The two spoke for more than 90 minutes about the problems Berthia was facing in his life. Briggs says he only spoke for about four or five minutes during the entire conversation. Eventually, Berthia decided to come back over and Briggs helped him over the edge and congratulated him.

“I asked him… ‘What happened here? What was the turning point in this? What did I do that helped this situation? And what did I do that wasn’t so good that hurt this situation?’ And all he told me was, ‘You listened. You let me speak, and you listened.’ And that’s all he was looking for and that’s all that many, many people are looking for is someone to listen.”

Briggs says he thinks people contemplating suicide don’t want to hear things like, “You’ll get over it,” and, “It’s going to get better”.

“What I believe, personally, they want to hear is, ‘Yeah, it is tough’.”

“I try to explain to them, wow that sounds really tough. And normalize their situation. That’s a real big one, is to try to normalize their situation. You know, ‘Wow, what you’re going through is a whole lot of stuff and that’d be tough on anybody. I think anyone going through all that might be thinking about suicide’.

“It takes a lot of courage to be over that rail. It takes a lot of courage. But it also takes a lot of courage to come back and face the reality that is with them right now. But there is a brighter side to this, and it can happen, and it might take a long time and a lot of work. But life is beautiful and, you know, it is worth living.”

Briggs says that although he can’t fix any of the issues that people are dealing with, it is important to listen and to try to understand what they are going through.

Briggs retired from the California Highway Patrol in 2013, and he now works in suicide prevention. source