I saved a quiet little boy’s life with four words – I dread to think what might have happened if I’d never noticed him
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AS THE little boy wrapped his arms around her waist, Flaviane Carvalho felt a wave of happiness and relief. It was her second time meeting the young lad and, just three months later, the change in him was enormous. Flaviane Carvalho, 46, could hardly believe this was the same quiet boy whose life she had saved thanks to just four words.
![[Flaviane Carvalho has been celebrated for saving a young boy's life by asking a four word question]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Flaviane-2.jpeg?strip=all&w=640)
It had been New Year's Day and Flaviane had bee called into work at the restaurant she was managing. Flaviane had been working at Mrs Potato in Florida for two years and was happy to help out, but little did she know she was about to save a young boy's life.
![[After noticing that the boy's injuries in the restaurant she worked in, Flaviane wrote the words 'do you need help?' on a piece of paper]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Flaviane-3.jpeg?strip=all&w=720)
It was 2pm by the time Flaviane arrived and the restaurant was already packed. She remembers: “Everyone was in a celebratory mood and the hours sped by. Before I knew it, it was 10.30pm, just half an hour before closing time.”. It was then that the restaurant door opened and a family walked in.
![[Flaviane alerted the police and her bravery helped bring two convictions]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Flaviane-Carvalho.jpeg?strip=all&w=416)
“I’d never seen the couple or their son before but they stuck out because not many parents took their children for dinner so late in the evening,” Flaviane says. And there was something else that was odd. “The man and woman were wearing short sleeves, while the little boy was covered up in a long-sleeved hoodie and trousers,” she says.
![[His step father Timothy Wilson was sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of child abuse]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Timothy-Wilson_mug-shot.jpg?strip=all&w=844)
“And while the adults ordered food for themselves and chatted, the little boy, who looked as if he was about ten or 11, sat silently. “I kept my eye on him and started to feel concerned. “He wasn’t eating anything and he was so quiet. “I just knew something wasn’t right so I came up with an excuse to go over.”.
