In May, Cynthia Drake lost her breath, and for a moment thought she was going to lose her life.
[Ads /]
"It just stopped and I couldn't catch my breath and I was trying to call her name but I couldn't talk that much," she said.
Her great-granddaughter, Zion Carter, was downstairs at the time, and Cynthia said she was barely able to call out for help.
"I didn't even think she had really heard me," she said.
But the 7-year-old had, and then she did a lot more than that.
"I was just watching TV and she - I heard her call my name so I went upstairs. She wasn't breathing so I grabbed her phone and started calling 911," Zion recalled.
"My phone was laying right beside me and she just grabbed it and started doing her thing," said Cynthia.
That bravery was honored Monday night at a special village meeting in Richton Park.
[Ads /]
"I just thought how brave she was, she was an amazing little brave caller. She knew everything that she needed to know," said 911 dispatcher Kandi Myers.
The 7-year-old showed strength beyond her years on that day.
"I was thinking about how she needs to stay strong and how she needs to be safe and brave," Zion said.
But the greatest reward for Zion didn't come in the form of a package or a plaque, but from her great-grandmother's embrace.
"It makes me feel good on the inside," Zion said.
"She's just a special little girl to me, she always been special before this even happened," Cynthia said. "If it wasn't for her I don't think I would be here. I know I wouldn't be here."