Soccer coach Ekkapol Chantawong took his team of players into a cave on June 23. After the exit routes were blocked from flood waters, the boys and their coach were trapped inside the cage for nine days before being found.

The boys, ages 11 to 16, stayed in the cave an additional nine days before finally getting rescued. It was a massive rescue mission that caught the attention of people around the world. Eventually, all 12 boys and their coach made it out alive.

The coach was the most malnourished among the group because he gave most of his scarce portions of food to the boys. While some people blame him for the team being trapped in the first place, some have hailed him as a hero.

This incident isn’t the only time Ekkapol has escaped death. When he was 10 years old, his entire family died from a terrible disease that swept through the Thailand village he and his family lived in. He lived with relatives until the age of 12 and then he was sent to a monastery.

He learned the ways of the monks and learned how to survive with the bare necessities; skills that ultimately helped the team and him survive in the cave. Three years ago he went to live with and care for his ailing grandmother. He was living with her when he became trapped in the cave.

Ekkapol found his true calling working with the boys and took care of them like they were his own family. The parents of the boys spoke out in his defense to people who blamed the coach for the entire incident. Knowing what a kind heart he has, they worry about his state of mind now that the ordeal is over.

The authorities have yet to decide an official verdict whether the incident was irresponsible, poor judgement, or a simple mistake. But the people who know him say that he would have given his own life to make sure the boys made it out alive.

Ekkopal wrote a note to the parents of the boys begging them not to blame themselves and apologizing for the entire event. Share this story with your family and friends and see what they think.