Glendale police honor men who saved child’s life
Sep 19, 2012, 6:47 PM | Updated: 6:48 pm
Two men who saved the life of a 3-year-old Glendale boy were hailed as heroes by the city on Wednesday.
The two men, Gene Lofton and John Peralta were recognized during a ceremony at Glendale Police Headquarters.
On Sept. 11, the two co-workers spotted Seth Gray in the pool as they made their rounds at the Ridgepoint Apartments where they work.
“I looked into the pool, and I saw Seth face down,” said Lofton. “I just jumped in and pulled him out. John hopped over the fence and started doing CPR. That was it.”
Seth told reporters that he went into the pool to get his Toy Story Woody doll.
“Woody was in the pool, so I was trying to save him,” said Seth.
Brittany Elizabeth Gray, Seth’s mother, said the family had only been living in the apartment for two days. Seth and his younger brother slipped out of the apartment while she was taking a nap with her kids.
“The gate to the pool was open, so they went in,” said Gray. “They dropped his Woody doll into the pool, so he went in to get his younger brother out.”
After the brother was out of the pool, Gray said Seth went back into the pool after the doll.
“That’s when he got scared, and that’s when they found him,” she said.
Gray, whose husband is in the military and deployed overseas, said she is grateful for Lofton and Peralta.
“There’s not enough words in the dictionary to express how our family feels in gratitude,” said Gray. “There’s nothing we could ever do, but we’re eternally grateful.”
Police said there is a chance that Gray may be charged with neglect.
Gray said she’s been told that she could face charges and has hired an attorney.
