In 2005, the United States was struck by one of the most devastating hurricanes in the country’s history, and one of the six most powerful in the world.
With waves reaching 11 meters high and winds blowing at 280 km/h, Katrina resulted in nearly 1,836 deaths, several thousand injuries, and material damage amounting to 108 billion dollars.
Witnessing the violence of the weather conditions caused, the entire country was on high alert, and the U.S. military was mobilized to assist populations in perilous conditions.
One of the rescue operations, led by Air Force Chief Sergeant Mike Maroney, involved saving the Brown family from flooding.
Once they reached dry land, their little daughter, Lashay, immediately threw herself around her rescuer’s neck to give him a tender hug, expressing all her gratitude for saving her and her family from imminent death.
But the little girl had no idea of the impact her hug had on the soldier. He was suffering from severe post-traumatic stress, and the girl’s gesture of appreciation came to him as a gift from heaven.
It allowed him to remember the nobility of his work and forget for a few seconds the traumas he had endured. Moreover, the photo of them together had become his talisman, and he even took it with him to Afghanistan and Iraq, where he was deployed.
Upon returning to the United States, Mike Maroney did his best to find the girl, but his efforts were in vain. He then launched a search campaign on social media, and it was only after 10 years of searching that their meeting finally took place.
Seeing LaShay for the second time after so many years, Chief Sergeant Maroney was deeply moved. He even made a statement that left her speechless: “You saved me more than I saved you!”