In December 2017, Jimmy Amisial made a decision that would change the course of his life. At the time, he was a student studying communication and electronic media at Texas State University. During a trip home to Haiti, he was shocked to hear the cries of a screaming baby inside a nearby dumpster. As he approached, the infant appeared to be in excruciating pain as ants covered his entire body.

“Everyone was just staring at him — not a single soul wanted to help,” Amisial said about the life-changing day. Amisial added, “He was crying and had no clothes on and I could see the pain in his eyes — I had to do something.” The Texas student brought the child home and admits his mother Elcie was surprised to see the 4 month old. They cleaned him up and reported the abandoned child to authorities. According to The Daily Mail, the pair had no luck locating the boy’s birth parents.

Amisial named the baby Emilio Angel Jeremiah but left the infant in his mother’s care in Haiti to return to the United States to finish school. “When I was asked to raise him, I stayed awake for days tossing and turning, trying to make a decision. I was already behind on my university fees, and my family has always struggled to make ends meet,” he said. Amisial added, “I didn’t have a dad growing up, and this poor child was facing a lifetime of instability and uncertainty. Something inside was telling me that this had happened for a reason — so I took a leap of faith. Sometimes, you don’t have to know what to do; you just have to be ready to do it.”

To be able to legally adopt Jeremiah, now 5, Amisial needs $60,000 and has created a GoFundMe to do so. He shared, “It’s been an incredible journey and watching him grow up has been so rewarding — I’m very proud of him,” he said. “I had to do what I had to do when no one else wanted to do it, and I’m so grateful for the past four and a half years.” He continued, “One thing I know is that you can never go wrong when you choose love. It was those divine moments and interventions to show love, and clarity and show the world that we can do better.”