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'I'm glad he is safe': Waitress who saved boy, 11, from his abusive parents by passing him a note during meal speaks out after $27K is raised on GoFundMe for her

More than $27,000 has been crowd-funded for a 'hero' waitress who saved an 11-year-old boy from allegedly abusive parents after passing him a note at a restaurant in Florida. 

Flaviane Carvalho was working at Mrs Potato Restaurant in Orlando when you noticed the child had cuts and bruises, so passed him a note asking 'do you need help?' on January 1. 

Police said her quick-thinking helped the boy escape a possibly life-threatening situation.  

A fundraiser was set up yesterday by the restaurant's manager, Rafaela Cabede, after the restaurant was flooded with well-wishers wanting to help and reward the waitress. It quickly met its original goal of $10,000 and as of January 16 reached more than $27,600. 

But Carvalho said it wasn't about the donations.

'To me what I did was something normal, natural so I never thought about that', she said. 

'I’m glad because now the boy is safe and I hope people use this fact to be couraged to step up when someone is in need.'

Cabede wrote on the GoFundMe Page: 'The purpose of this...is to reward Flaviane for taking a stand and speaking up.' 

Police said a trust account has been created in support of the children involved in this abuse case. 

A Go Fund Me has raised more than $26,000 for a Florida waitress Flavaine Carvalho who saved an 11-year-old boy from his allegedly abusive parents by passing him a note asking 'do you need help?' (pictured)

A Go Fund Me has raised more than $26,000 for a Florida waitress Flavaine Carvalho who saved an 11-year-old boy from his allegedly abusive parents by passing him a note asking 'do you need help?'

The fundraiser was set up by the restaurant's manager Rafaela Cabede on January 15 after the restaurant was flooded with well-wishers wanting to help. It overshot its goal of $10,000 quickly and is now well over $27,500 as of January 16

The fundraiser was set up by the restaurant's manager Rafaela Cabede on January 15 after the restaurant was flooded with well-wishers wanting to help. It overshot its goal of $10,000 quickly and is now well over $27,500 as of January 16

The incident took place at the Mrs Potato Restaurant on Orlando, Florida, on January 1

The incident took place at the Mrs Potato Restaurant on Orlando, Florida, on January 1

The boy's stepfather Timothy Wilson II (left), 34, was first arrested on one count of third-degree child abuse. The boy's mother Kristen Swann (right), 31, was arrested and charged with two counts of child neglect

The boy's stepfather Timothy Wilson II , 34, was first arrested on one count of third-degree child abuse. The boy's mother Kristen Swann , 31, was arrested and charged with two counts of child neglect

'I’ve received so many calls, emails, messages from all over where people wanted to donate, people wanted to reward her in some way,' Cabede told ClickOrlando.com.

On the GoFundMe page Cabede added: 'Kindness is not something that necessarily needs to be rewarded. That being said, any support will always be welcomed and greatly appreciated, especially for someone that works in one of the industries most affected by the pandemic, restaurants'.

Following the announcement of her actions, Carvalho said during a press conference that when the family sat at a table, she noticed that everyone received food except for the boy, which struck her as odd.

The boy's stepfather Timothy Wilson told her that the boy would eat dinner at home, Carvalho said, before she noticed that the boy had bruises over his face and arms.

'I could see he had a big scratch between his eyebrows,' Carvalho said.

'A couple of minutes later, I saw a bruise on the side of his eye. So I felt there was something really wrong.'

In reality, Wilson and the boy's mother Kristen Swann were allegedly abusing him at home, including by tying him up with ratchet straps, beating him and hanging him upside down.

Carvalho secretly wrote the note reading 'do you need help? OK' and stood behind the boy's parents so they could not see her.

The child initially declined help by shaking his head, before signalling 'yes' after Carvalho's second attempt, prompting her to call 911.

Police said if it were not for Carvalho's (second right) actions, the badly abused boy could have ended up dead

Police said if it were not for Carvalho's (second right) actions, the badly abused boy could have ended up dead  

In audio released by police from her phone call, Carvalho says: 'I'm super concerned and I don't know what to do, can you give me some advice? What I can do?

'The boy is with bruises and he's not eating. The others are eating.'

When officers arrived on the scene, they interviewed the parents and the child, who was said to have winced in pain when asked to roll up the sleeves of his sweatshirt, revealing bruises on his arms.

Eventually, the boy's stepfather, Timothy Wilson II, 34, was first arrested on one count of third-degree child abuse.

Wilson was later arrested for a second time on January 6 and charged with multiple counts of aggravated child abuse and child neglect for his conduct involving his stepson, which investigators have likened to torture.

The victim's mother, Kristen Swann, 31, was arrested and charged with two counts of child neglect for allegedly being aware of the abuse and failing to seek medical help for her son.    

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