Being an older sibling comes with lots of responsibilities. For one older sister, that means making sure her little brother is safe and sound. 9-year-old Lexie Jackson is an amazing big sister – so amazing, in fact, that she even saved her little brother Leeland’s life.

Lexie has her share of challenges in this life.

She has Cerebral Palsy and is unable to walk or talk. Despite her challenges, Lexie managed to do the greatest thing any of us can ever do; she saved a life.

Lexie saw her little brother fall into the pool.

The incident happened on Lexie’s 9th birthday. The little girl was strapped into her wheelchair as her mother and grandmother were preparing the home for her birthday party. Lexie was alone when she saw her little brother get out through a patio door and fall into the pool.

Lexie started screaming as loud as she could and pointing at the door that leads to the family’s pool. Lexie’s mother, Kelly Jackson, heard her screams.

Sneaking out the back door, this little guy wound up in the family pool, thankfully his sister was there to help. Lexie’s story is coming up on @CTV_Liveat5 @CTVAtlantic pic.twitter.com/udKyDNAZfu

— Heather Butts (@HeatherButtsCTV) July 3, 2018

“I was upstairs changing for the party, her dad was picking up her older brother, and my mom was in the kitchen, when suddenly I just heard Lexie screaming. I panicked and immediately thought ‘Oh no, she must have fallen off her chair,’” Kelly told CNN.

Lexie’s grandmother also heard the screams and ran towards them.

She was unable to find Leeland and alerted Kelly that something was very wrong.

“When my mom told me what was going on, I quickly looked out the window and there, at the edge of the pool I saw his little head,” Kelly continued.

“I began to panic, and my mom quickly ran towards him and pulled him out.”

Rescuing Leeland.

After Leeland’s mother pulled him out of the pool they called an emergency hotline and followed their instructions. Once he was in stable condition they took him to the hospital.

Thankfully, little Leeland was just fine but things could have been much worse had Lexie not alerted her mother and grandmother to what happened.

“At that moment, it was so scary. We thought it was not going to end well, we hugged him a million times. In two seconds a life can change and we are just thankful that Lexie was so quick to alert us,” Kelly said.

Lexie is a hero!

Lexie was recognized as a hero in her community in Halifax. The city’s police department and the Halifax Regional Council decided to honor her.

“Heroes come in all sizes. It was a real pleasure to recognize young Lexie for alerting her mom when her toddler brother made a dash for the pool,” Halifax Mayor Mike Savage tweeted.

Heroes come in all sizes. It was a real pleasure to recognize young Lexi for alerting her mom when her toddler brother made a dash for the pool. @TonyMancini_NS pic.twitter.com/EFaIbBo3Wv

— Mayor Mike Savage (@MikeSavageHFX) July 4, 2018

Lexie’s mother pointed out that just because some people living with disabilities are unable to speak, they still understand what is going on, they still want what’s best for the family members they love.

“Some people think that because they have a disability, they are not able to do things, but if she could walk, she would have grabbed him and he would have never gone out there. Her disability is all physical. She is a very bright girl.”

Lexie was given the Act of Bravery award at Halifax City Hall by the Halifax Regional Police. One day, when Leeland is older, he’ll be able to appreciate what his big sister did for him as well.

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Article Sources:

CTV News

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By Ian Carey

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Ian Carey is a contributor at SBLY Media.