DEERFIELD BEACH, Fla. – A special ceremony was held Thursday for a middle school student who saved a 13-year-old girl from drowning at a Deerfield Beach pool.
Angel Rivera, 11, was all smiles and feeling appreciated when he was recognized in front of his entire school.
"I feel great because I saved the girl's life and then look at this. They're doing all this for me," Angel said.
Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel, Angel's principal, the mayor of Deerfield Beach and Angel's proud parents were all in attendance to honor him.
"We have a word in the dictionary to describe what Angel did," Israel said. "The word is 'hero.' This is an absolute hero."
Authorities said Angel pulled Usley Michele from their community pool April 24 when he saw her struggling in the water. She was rushed to a hospital, where she stayed for four days.
Today, she's celebrating life and thanking the little boy she credits for being alive.
"He's my brother," she said. "I don't even know what to say, because without him I don't know what my family was going to do."
"I did tell him, 'When you see something that you can save, do it. Do not run away like some people do,' and he said, 'Well Mom, I'll do it one day. You'll see.' And that day came," Angel's mother, Violeta Rivera, said.
Employees from Florida Swim School were also at the ceremony and gave Usley a grant for free swim lessons for her and her family.
As for Angel, he said he wants to be a lifeguard when he grows up.