This Georgia State Trooper's Amazing Act of Kindness Saved 4 Kids' Halloween After Their Parents Were Killed
A 25-year-old Georgia trooper is being hailed a hero, not for saving anyone's life, but for giving four children a night — and holiday — they'll never forget. On Halloween night, Donald and Crystal Howard left their children — ages 13, 10, 8, and 6 — at home while they ran to the store to pick up face paint and more candy for trick-or-treaters. Their SUV careened off the road and hit a tree. They didn't survive the crash.
Trooper Nathan Bradley was tasked with informing the next of kin, but when he got to the house, he had another thought:
"A county deputy, the deputy coroner and myself made our way to the house that was backed into the woods. You could hear dogs barking behind the wooden door as we knocked with desperation. The door hesitantly opened and there behind the locked screen door stood four children in full costume – a 13-year-old Freddy Krueger, 10-year-old daughter of a Dracula, 8-year-old wizard and a 6-year-old that appeared to be a firefighting ninja turtle. We were lost with words. The deputy then asked the eldest boy if anybody was home, hoping for a 'Yes' but the boy would unknowingly disappoint us. 'My parents went to the store to get more face paint. They told us not to open the door for anybody, but they should be back soon.'
We would stall for the next hour while we frantically search the national databases for the closest relative. We were able to reach the kids' paternal grandmother. She had wished for my call to be a cruel Halloween Prank. I urged her to please come to the house and claim custody of the children. She informed me that she lived in south Florida, but would be on her way. During my phone conversation, I watched through my windshield as the three youngest children ran around the yard, laughing.
Knowing that he'd have to call Child Protective Services and that the children would have to spend the night in jail until the grandmother arrived, Officer Bradley went out on a limb. "I pulled the deputy coroner to the side and told him that I was split. I wanted to preserve these kids' Halloween and the ones to come. I suggested that I'd care for them until their family was able to. Being a retired commander with the state patrol, I desired his approval, which he eagerly gave."
Officer Bradley asked the grandmother's permission to spare them the news of their parents' deaths until she arrived and took custody of the children for the night.
"The first thing I said was, 'Hey lets go get something to eat,'" Bradley told 11 Alive News. "They said, 'My parents will be here soon.' I said, 'Your grandma wants you to hang out with me till she gets here."
He took them to McDonald's for french fries as requested by two of the kids and to Burger King for a Whopper with onions as requested by another. The kids were treated to movies and Halloween candy at the police patrol post, followed by a sleepover. Officer Bradley spent seven hours supervising the kids and giving them the best Halloween he could. His descriptions of their gratitude are amazing. One child told him, "You turned an F-Minus day into an A-Plus night!" He then says, "I can't begin to explain how hard it was to hear that, considering the night would be memorable but for reasons that were yet to be disclosed to them."
Officer Bradley and the children's grandmother decided to wait to tell them the news until the next morning, hoping they'd associate their parents' deaths with Nov. 1, rather than Halloween. He gave them their holiday that could easily have been destroyed by such tragic news. And he didn't stop there.
After hearing how much it would cost to move the children to Florida and bury the parents there, he set up a GoFundMe page. In the past three days, he's raised close to $70,000 for the family.
"It's the first time in the line of duty I told someone I loved them, and I do love them," Bradley said. "I care about them a lot." And we're certain those children know it.