A 27-year-old college student in Texas says he intends to adopt a baby he found abandoned in a trash can while he was in Haiti for a vacation. According to Daily Mail, the abandoned baby was four months old when Jimmy Amisial found him. The Texas student was also in the Caribbean nation to visit his 66-year-old mother at the time.
The college student is said to have taken the baby from the trash can before taking him home. He and his 66-year-old mother then freshened the minor up, fed him and sought medical help. The minor had suffered ant bites at the time he was found.
And though the 27-year-old and his mother also notified police about the abandoned baby, efforts by law enforcement to locate the minor’s parent’s proved futile. Amisial ultimately agreed to become the baby’s legal guardian after a judge tabled the offer. He named the boy Emilio Angel Jeremiah.
“When I woke up that day, I was totally unaware that my life was about to change forever,” Amisial, who was headed to an orphanage when he saw the abandoned baby, recalled.
“People were crowding round this bin and I heard them arguing about what to do with this tiny baby. Everyone was just staring at him – not a single soul wanted to help. He was crying and had no clothes on and I could see the pain in his eyes – I had to do something.”
Amisial said it took him a while to decide if he wanted to become Emilio’s legal guardian. “When I was asked to raise him, I stayed awake for days tossing and turning, trying to make a decision,” he said.
“I was already behind on my university fees and my family has always struggled to make ends meet. But I didn’t have a dad growing up, and this poor child was facing a lifetime of instability and uncertainty. Something inside was telling me that this had happened for a reason – so I took a leap of faith. Sometimes you don’ have to know what to do, you just have to be ready, to do it.”
The college student ultimately decided to raise the baby with his mother’s assistance, per Daily Mail. The minor, who is now four years old, has emotionally bonded with Amisial over the years. The 27-year-old has since submitted an application to adopt Emilio as he wants to take a fatherly role in the minor’s life.
“It’s been an incredible journey and watching him grow up has been so rewarding – I’m very proud of him,” he said. “I had to do what I had to do when no one else wanted to do it, and I’m so grateful for the past four and a half years. I truly do feel like a father, and I’m excited to put pen to paper and make Emilio my son – I just need to raise the money first.”
He added: “I’m glad I got the opportunity to transform his life from being abandoned in the trash to being a wonderful treasure.”
In 2020, Amisial initiated the official adoption process. He, however, has to raise $30,000 to be able to facilitate the adoption.
“It’s been fun seeing him grow – he’s a joy to be around,” he said. “Mom loves him, the kids in the orphanage love him, and I love him as if he were my own. He really is a special little boy.”
