Homeless Man, Joe Hollins, Saves Family from Fire

PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) -- A daring act of bravery from a man living on the street helped save a Phoenix family from an apartment fire early Thursday morning. Joe Hollins is being called a hero for what he did. The fire broke out just after 4 a.m. near 22nd Avenue and Indian School Road.

Claudia Jimenez and her two children were sleeping when her apartment burst into flames. “I went to the front door and opened it and the flames were already covering my front door. The whole stairs were on fire already,” she said. Neighbors started to bang on doors, trying to wake everyone up and get everyone out.

Jimenez said her family was trapped in their second-floor apartment. That’s when she ran to a back bedroom, opened a window and started screaming for help. “I started yelling, yelling, ‘Please someone help me! There’s a fire! I can’t get out! I need someone to help me,’ and that when I looked up and I see this gentleman coming and he’s like, ‘I’m gonna help you,’” said Jimenez.

Hollins camps out along a canal and saw the apartments next door catch fire, so he ran over to see if he could help. He heard the screams and rushed over. He told Jimenez to drop her kids and two dogs out the window, and he would catch them. “I actually tried to climb up the side of window and grab ‘em as far as I could. Grab one, set her down, grab another, set down. Get the dog, then she didn’t want to come at first, scared she would fall. Then I said, ‘I got you, don’t worry,’” said Hollins. (End of news article)

About me:

Hi, I’m Lorraine Pierce in Texas. I’m raising money for a hero, Joe Hollins, who is homeless and saved a family from a fire recently. A little about me for transparency; I’m no relation to him but was looking to donate here and found no fund set up! I am 59 years old and have terminal cancer. I’m just trying to do as much good as I can with the time I have left here on earth. I’m owner of L.A. Minerals, a cosmetic company I started in 2007. So I’m very public and easily found