Woman Makes First Responders Godparents Of Her Newborn Baby Whose Life They Saved

Kitana Garrett was alone at her home in Columbia, Tennessee when she unexpectedly went into labor at 25 weeks pregnant.

She immediately called 911, and Cody Hill, a ten-year veteran with Columbia Fire & Rescue was one of the first to arrive on scene. He and the others were expecting the worst since the baby was born so prematurely, but when they got there, they were relieved to see the baby breathing.

Hill’s training kicked into gear and he began taking care of the newborn while his colleagues were caring for Garrett. Hill turned the heat up in the house to keep the baby warm before beginning CPR with a bag valve mask to keep her breathing.

Once Jamie Roan, a paramedic, arrived in an ambulance, Hill ran the baby to her and hooked her up to a monitor. Their hope soared when they saw the baby move her shoulder, and they knew right then that she had a fighting chance.

After rushing the baby, who weighed just one pound and was the size of a hand, to the hospital, Hill and Roan stayed by her side until they knew she was stable.

The baby, whom Garrett named Za’myla, was transferred to the NICU at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt, where she spent the first four months of her life.

Hill and Roan kept in touch with Garrett so that they could check up on Za’myla and follow her progress. They also gifted gas cards to Garrett and collected donations and filled two ambulances with baby supplies for her.

Today, Za’myla is doing great and has grown and developed significantly, weighing in at ten pounds. Doctors in the NICU credit Hill and Roan with saving the baby’s life.

Garrett brought Za’myla to Columbia Fire & Rescue to reunite with her heroes. She continued to stay in touch with Hill and Roan and make frequent visits to them.

During one of her visits, she asked Hill and Roan if they would be Za’myla’s godparents, and of course they were honored.

Garrett is so grateful for Hill and Roan and always want to have them in her and her daughter’s life.

“All I can say is thank you a million times because they are a blessing God has sent,” Garrett told Good Morning America. “They didn’t give up, so I feel like they will continue do that later on in life [for Za’myla].”

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