At 12 years of age, Anthony Razzano followed the script of many young boys. He wanted to play football and on evening of October 31, 1987 he was scheduled to play an important Pop Warner League game. But on that day, the script changed tragically.

A still mysterious incident in the family garage forced Anthony out a side door, engulfed in a ball of flames. Neighbors acted quickly to extinguish the fire and summon paramedics who rushed him to the nearest hospital.

When his mother Janet first arrived, Anthony was talking and the first thing he said to me was, "Mommy, please don't be mad at me," and then, asked if he could still play in the game that night. Although Janet and ex-husband Eugene knew the burns were bad they didn't realize how bad. Anthony was transported by helicopter to West Penn Hospital's Burn Unit in Pittsburgh.

"We were told to make funeral arrangements," recalls Janet. They told us he would probably die overnight but that if not, he would probably die within three days and if he lived for three days he would die in three weeks of infection," says Eugene. And for the next three months, Janet, Eugene and their eldest son Eugene kept a round the clock vigil at the hospital riding the roller coaster of hope and dread that constitutes a burn victim's recovery. "We made a pact," says Eugene Sr., that we were all going to walk out of there together." Adds Janet, "When he walked out of West Penn Hospital, he didn't walk alone. The president of the hospital carried Anthony's bags through all these clapping people."

Medical professional claim that with third degree burns over 87 percent of the body, the number of people who survive is virtually zero. "Doctors at West Penn had no data on percentages or odds because they just don't live," Janet says.

To date Anthony has been through 43 surgeries, 134 blood transfusions and countless hours of physical rehabilitation. But with determination he has persevered through the painful recovery and will not let it stop him. "I never thought about it holding me back, I had no choice but to have faith in God and overcome this tragedy. I never focused on anything other than resuming my normal life," says Anthony.

Although he lost the fingers on his left hand, he continued his football career playing for the New Castle Red Hurricanes. His goals were the same as many young men. "I wanted to play high school football, go on to earn an education and build a family. I always dreamed that one day I would be very successful in business." According to Janet, "I know there's no way to keep him down, he lacks fear. I think my son has had a miraculous healing in his mind, body and spirit."

Anthony went on to earn both a Bachelors of Science in Business Administration (Finance) and a Masters of Science in Taxation from Robert Morris University. Anthony, a Certified Public Accountant, is the owner of Razzano Consulting LLC, Razzano Holdings LLC and the New Castle Thunder, Inc. Anthony is also the Founder of the Anthony Razzano Foundation, Inc., a non profit corporation organized to help those who, when faced with great challenges, demonstrate great courage.