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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Cool Kids: Fourth-grader’s quick action saves family, pets


Nine-year-old Jake Keefe recently received a certificate recognizing his heroism for alerting his mom to a fire in September in their Rathdrum home.
 (Patty Hutchens / The Spokesman-Review)
Patty Hutchens Correspondent

RATHDRUM – Being a good listener can save lives. Just ask 9-year-old Jake Keefe, a fourth-grade student at John Brown Elementary in Rathdrum. In late September, Jake awoke to a smoke-filled bedroom. Once he realized what was going on, he quickly woke up his mom.

“It was really late,” said Jake. “I think it was in the early 10s.”

Jake said he awoke and realized his kittens were agitated. He then realized there was smoke in his room and remembered everything he had been taught during the firefighters’ visits to his school in previous years.

“I said ‘Holy crud, I better get down.’ So I went down to the floor and crawled on my belly like a crocodile,” said Jake. “I learned to do that every year (from the firemen) and we used to have a fire-safety video, too.”

He said he went to his mom’s bedroom and pounded on her door telling her to wake up.

“But I always remembered to stay low to the floor,” said Jake.

His quick thinking saved his mom, his sister, their two kittens, dog and pet snake from what could have been a tragedy.

Jake said the fire started from either something too close to the fireplace or a tipped over candle. He isn’t sure. But what he is sure of is that he is getting a lot of attention for his quick thinking.

“I feel like a hero because of the life-saving, but it feels kind of awkward,” said Jake. “Awkward is one of our vocabulary words. That’s why I used it!”

Members of the local fire department recently came to an assembly at John Brown Elementary and presented Jake with an award for his heroism.

“It (the award certificate) even had its own frame and I also got a Dairy Queen gift card,” said Jake, who adds that there was really only one question that was asked by just about all his friends in his school. They all wanted to know if he still lived in the same house.

Jake is in his second year at John Brown Elementary and lived in Post Falls and Coeur d’Alene before moving to Rathdrum last year. He said he is one of the top readers in his class and really enjoys books.

“I am really good at reading. I even read chapter books when I was in the first grade,” said Jake.

His teacher, Mr. Houchin, is a great motivator and has obviously helped to inspire a love of learning in Jake.

“Mr. Houchin is a really, really nice guy and he’s fair,” said Jake, who adds that his teacher also possesses another important quality to being a good educator. “He’s also really funny.”

While Jake enjoys school, he especially loves anything to do with Pokemon.

“I sometimes hibernate in my room and just organize my Pokemon cards,” he said.

But reading isn’t the only subject in which Jake excels. He is evidently good at math, too. He has figured out his dad’s age, which due to the fact his dad was born on Feb. 29, requires some pretty advanced calculations for a fourth-grader.

“My dad was born on a leap year on the extra day. But if he wasn’t, he would be 31, but instead he’s only 7,” said Jake. “So I’m actually older than my dad!”

Jake said he would like to give advice to other kids who may find themselves in a situation similar to what he was in. He advises that above all else it is important to remember what they have learned from the fire-safety lessons at school.

“Don’t panic that much and always go to the floor and remember to wake your parents or guardian,” he said. Also, being a hero means more than being recognized by the fire department and his fellow classmates of his efforts. The recognition and hero worship continues at home.

“My little sister (Cassandra, or C.C. as he calls her) keeps calling me her hero,” said Jake. “But I just told her I was already her hero before the fire.”