'I Would Like To Thank Him Personally': Parents Credit Officer With Saving 1-Year-Old Who Had Seizure

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PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- "Thank the Lord above."

A father's grateful prayer. Brandon Baker thought his son was choking to death Sunday afternoon. The boy's mother, Brittani Graham, was at work. They both thank a police officer from Zone 5 for saving their child.

"Well, I was sitting in my chair and my son was drinking his bottle, and he got halfway through the bottle and he was done. Five minutes after that, I seen him start to shake. I seen his eyes roll in the back of his head," Baker said.

Baker and his family, who live above the LE Corner Store in Larimer, went downstairs to get help from the boy's grandmother. He called 911. Keep in mind, Baker knows CPR and is certified but all of that became a distant memory.

Two Pittsburgh police officers arrived. One of them was Bryce Valencic.

"The male officer came in, he rushed in downstairs, he pretty much took over the scene. He patted him on the back. He, I guess, I couldn't see because at that point, he had his back towards me. I am guessing he put his fingers over his mouth ... I did see him pat him on the back," Baker said.

Once at the hospital, Baker and Graham were told their son was not choking at all.

"He had a high temperature of 102. They said he had a seizure and it was a febrile seizure from his core temperature being spiked," Baker said.

Baker, a mentor for young people is being honored by the Pittsburgh Courier as one of the 2019 Black Men of Excellence. He told KDKA that Officer Valencic is also a man of excellence for saving his son.

"If he would like to meet, I would like to thank him personally," Baker said.