‘I’ve already hit the lottery. I’ve got my son back:’ Parents thankful for son’s ‘miracle’ rescue

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla — All hope seemed lost, but then Charles Greggory was rescued early Saturday morning in what his father would go on to call “nothing short of a miracle.”

“The fact he’s in our house, you know, he’s in our hearts… he’s back. We got our son back,” Raymond Gregory told Action news Jax in tear-filled disbelief on Sunday.

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Charles Gregory had been missing for 30 hours after a tide carried his Jon boat out to sea off the shore of St. Augustine Thursday night. Raymond Gregory told Action News Jax there was even a point during the search where he and his wife had begun to lose hope.

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“I’m thinking if you ain’t found him in the first six hours, I don’t know ... when I woke up, I just already accepted the fact I would never see my son again,” said Raymond Gregory.

Action News Jax brought you the heartwarming reunion with his parents when it happened on Saturday.

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Now, with severe sunburns all over his body, being severely dehydrated, and having paper-like, wrinkled skin, Charles has a grueling road to recovery ahead.

“His body is just so ravaged right now,” his father said. “He’s gonna be okay. But it’s just gonna take him taking it easy, hydrating, and really taking care of himself for the next week to get back.”

Raymond and his wife, Debra Gregory, say they’re now just thankful for the outpouring of support from within the St. Augustine community and thankful for the countless hours spent to bring their boy home again.

“I’m never gonna play [the] Powerball. Cus I don’t need any more luck. I’ve already hit the lottery. I’ve got my son back,” Raymond said with a smile of joyful relief.

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