Florida detective, Mike Blair, has turned tragedy into hope by adopting a young boy who is the sole survivor of a family massacre.
It began in March 2018 when Blair responded to a tragic crime scene in which a man had killed his girlfriend and special needs daughter, and critically injured his young son.
The guilty – Ronnie Oneal – was convicted on two counts of first-degree murder as well as an attempted murder in connection with the attack. The girlfriend, named Kenyatta Barron, had called 911 in the midst of the event.
By the time police arrived on the scene, Barron and daughter were already dead.
The son, also named Ronnie, was alive but in critical condition from severe burns and stab wounds.
Blair recounts the event in a video shared by the Sheriff’s Office, saying “we were told there was a child being medevacked to Tampa General, but he was not expected to live.”
But by some miracle, Ronnie pulled through.
According to the Sheriff’s Office, a few weeks later Blair went to visit Ronnie in hospital.
“He kind of held onto my hand as I left, and he said, ‘could you watch a movie with me?
“I said no, I can’t. I gotta get back to work… how about I come back and watch a movie with you tonight?” Blair told.
The officer already had a date night planned with his wife, though as kind-hearted as ever, they changed their plans and spent the evening watching a movie with young Ronnie instead.
Blair’s wife, Danyel, says “I had already known that I would want to take Ronnie home with us, starting that night.”
Five months later came the time to find an adoptive home for Ronnie, and with little hesitation the Blair family decided to put their name forward.
Mike and Danyel already have six children but that didn’t stop them from gaining one more.
Ronnie, who is now 12, has joined the Blair family.
Mike says, “he knows he has a story that has been written for him, he also knows he doesn’t want to be defined by that story.”