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It was a hot July day nearly 25 years ago when Diana Bryant, who was only 19 years old, stood on the rusty fire escape of her burning Back Bay apartment, clinging to a Boston firefighter and trying to shield her godchild from the flames. They were only seconds from safety when the fire escape collapsed, plunging Bryant five stories to her death. The little girl, 2-year-old Tiare Jones, whose fall may have been cushioned by Bryant's body, escaped without serious injury.

(Stanley) Forman is now a WCVB-TV photographer, and he asks: How is Tiare? "I always wondered how she made out." Forman, who would go on to win another Pulitzer the year after photographing the accident, hasn't seen her since a few days after the 1975 fire, when she returned home from the hospital and he brought her a teddy bear.

In recent months, though, Tiare (pronounced Tee-are-rah) Jones has begun to remake a life that nearly shattered almost a quarter century ago. And this time, she says, she is determined to succeed. As a condition of regaining custody of three of her children that were taken by the Department of Social Services, she is living in the halfway house in suburban Boston. She already has custody of her oldest daughter, Antoinette, 9, who has been living with her since February.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction or distribution is prohibited without permission.

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14y ago

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