"The fire was an accident," says Sean of the explosion that occurred when something ignited three gas cans that had been stored in the car in which he'd fallen asleep, after a night out with his father. "My dad would never do anything to hurt me."
Whether the fire was accidental or intended, the results were the same: It melted Sean's face beyond recognition. And it charred his fingers to the first knuckles.
At the time, the media were all over the terrible tale of the burned little boy. But after Eduardo's conviction, Sean's fate was left to the imagination as other news took over the headlines.
Tomorrow night, Sean will update the world as he shares his second story, the wonderful one, at a Union League fundraiser for the Burn Foundation - a nonprofit that supports burn victims and burn-prevention efforts. For years, the foundation sent Sean to a camp for young burn victims, where his self-confidence soared among kids who looked like him.
In a keynote speech, he will say that he is at peace with what happened to him in the fire. And that it has given him such a clear understanding of the human condition, he actually feels grateful when he looks in the mirror.
"Everyone has hard things to deal with," says Sean, whose appearance - his eyebrows are mostly missing; his nose, lips and ears are deformed; parts of his scalp are patchy - can elicit stares of shock from even the kindest strangers. "They might be dealing with drug addiction or alcoholism or cancer. Maybe they lost a loved one.
"The difference between me and other people is that the whole world can see what my challenge is," says Sean, as we chat at Hatboro-Horsham (where he plays varsity soccer; yesterday he scored the tying goal in a 2-2 game against Central Bucks West).
