Following Hurricane Katrina's devastation, a US Army commander rescued two newborn twins. The infants have now integrated his influence into their lives.
The young boys were starving and dehydrated, barely able to hold on in the hot and oppressive weather after Hurricane Katrina broke New Orleans' levee system, inundating the city and taking the lives of 1,392 individuals in the region.
Their mother, Alexandria Wheeler, had run out of formula to feed them and had no choice but to venture out for help that was clearly not coming.
"It was like being in a third-world country on US soil," she said in an interview with CNN, describing the journey she took to reach dry land. When she saw a man in a combat uniform, a black beret, and aviator glasses, she knew her family was about to be rescued: "He was like God coming in, stepping in out of nowhere."
This man turned out to be Lt. Gen. Russel Honoré, who, along with his team, quickly picked up A'Mari and J'Mari Reynolds--each wearing nothing but a diaper and a tiny navy baseball cap.
This encounter was short-lived, but it would have significant meaning. After a flood that would claim their home in New Orleans and cause further difficulty, the Reynolds twins eventually made their way to Atlanta and graduated from Eagle's Landing High School.
Before they walked across the stage to receive their diplomas, they wanted to thank Honoré, who was now 76 and retired, for his assistance so many years earlier. They got in touch with him through a video call and shared their appreciation for his actions that day.
"Wow! Nineteen years ago, boys!" Honoré said when he saw them on the laptop near the commencement venue. He then recounted the moment they first met: "You were toddlers on Poydras and Convention Street when your mom was walking down the street with you, one in each arm. And as we walked up toward her, myself and two soldiers, she started to lower her arms."
In the chaotic aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Wheeler had been more worried about her children than herself. “We hadn’t eaten in maybe six days” when she began her trek to the makeshift shelter at the Superdome, with one baby strapped to her chest and the other on her back. The supplies there were scarce, so she made her way to Harrah's casino nearby.
However, there, military personnel with guns drawn confronted her and the boys.
"We're the victims," Wheeler thought when she saw soldiers with weapons.
But then she heard the man's voice she would never forget: "Put those weapons down, dammit!"
It was Honoré, who was sent to lead the Defense Department's response to Hurricanes Katrina and later Rita. He's remembered for his declaration captured on camera.
"He was like God's angel," Wheeler said. The firearms were lowered, and Honoré recognized the need to help the family. "Me and my team, I knew we had to reach out and help these babies."
The rescue, as Honoré described it, was nothing less than divine intervention: A US Coast Guard vessel had docked just two blocks away, a medevac aircraft was available, and a system was in place to evacuate critically injured patients to the state capital and then to Texas for help.
"This was meant to happen," Honoré reminded Wheeler. "If things had happened differently, it would have been unthinkable to even consider."
His care of Wheeler and her sons lasted approximately four hours, with Honoré cradling A'Mari and J'Mari before their family was transported to San Antonio for treatment.
Wheeler never doubted her gratitude and expressed that it was Honoré who saved her sons: "There's no question. We would have died."
"We would have been gone," she declared. "There's no doubt about it. We would have been gone."
Honoré's encounter with the Reynolds twins motivated him to accelerate their rescue efforts. "I needed to do this quicker, faster, better... I knew there would be other babies like us who didn't have the chance to experience this moment when everything came together," he said this week.
As the years went by, A'Mari and J'Mari repeatedly recounted their delivery story, even rewatching the video of their small selves being handed over to Honoré and his team before their flight to safety.
It would take another dozen years and a different dangerous storm, Hurricane Harvey, for the family to meet up with Honoré again. Harvey flooded their Houston apartment, claiming 68 lives in Texas and causing over $150 billion in damage. The storm also brought attention from the retired lieutenant general, who was still evaluating the best response to the increasing power of climate disasters.
Fortunately, Harvey's water didn't infiltrate their home. When she learned of Honoré's presence in Texas, Wheeler reached out to him on social media. He responded.
The quartet met up once more, with the twins rushing to express their gratitude towards the soldier who saved their lives.
Honoré wrapped his arms around them all, exclaiming, "Wow, you both grew up in 12 years!"
As the trio caught up, Honoré asked an important question for middle schoolers: where would they be attending college?
The Reynolds twins stayed connected with Honoré throughout the years, but it would take another seven years for them to announce their answers to that significant inquiry.
"You're graduating today!" the retired lieutenant general exclaimed excitedly as they sat at a picnic table in Atlanta wearing their graduation caps and gowns. "I want to say congratulations...Best marines in the world," he said to A'Mari. "You'll come out stronger than you went in."
"I'll learn how to say Ooh-rah," A'Mari replied, referencing the battle cry of the United States Marine Corps.
Next, J'Mari spoke, thanking Honoré for his courage and help during Hurricane Katrina. "You gave me the hope that there's still good in the world, and it gave me a chance to change my life both physically and mentally, to be kind to others and help those in need," he said. "I'm going to college to study automotive engineering. I want to help other people and ensure their safety."
Honoré once more took the lead, expressing gratitude for the twins' achievements. "Thank you...best of luck! I look forward to you creating inventions that will make the world safer from climate change...the opportunities are there to change the world with the education you'll receive and help save the planet," he said.
As Wheeler watched, she heard Honoré's message to her as well: "You did good! They're here today because of you and your determination and willingness to fight for them. You inspired us."
She thanked him in return, expressing her appreciation for his insistence that soldiers lay down their weapons, for validating their survival in Houston, and "for changing our lives forever." They could never find the right words to thank him, she admitted, nor repay him.
However, the scale appeared to be a wash. The beginnings of the paths chosen by the Reynolds twins might have been laid at the corner of Poydras Street, where a weary mom chanced upon a benevolent man in uniform.
"I feel incredibly fulfilled," Honoré stated. "The engineer will possess the capacity to change the world, and the Marine who's going into national service to protect our freedom and democracy...these young men, once rescued from the jaws of a life-threatening flood, will be game changers," he said of the children he'd saved from the flood.
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In the heartwarming encounter, Lt. Gen. Russel Honoré, a US Army commander, acknowledged the gratitude of the now-adult Reynolds twins for rescuing them as newborns after Hurricane Katrina.
Before receiving their high school diplomas, A'Mari and J'Mari wanted to express their gratitude to Honoré, who had saved their lives during the devastating storm.
Source: edition.cnn.com
