The toddler has recovered and doing great, said juvenile detective Sgt. Robert Bracken.

"This had a good ending, but it could have had severe consequences," Bracken said, adding that the two good Samaritans played a big part in saving the child’s life. Bracken said the two men will be written up and recommended for a commendation.

The toddler reached the Home Depot parking lot after hours of sitting in a hot car. Bracken said the toddler’s parents were out of town and Meira Lebovits, a 33-year-old mother of seven who lives on Dakota Street in Passaic, was to take the toddler, along with several other children, to a day camp. The toddler, Braken said, was picked up at 9:30 a.m. and was seat-belted into the third row of seats of Lebovits’ SUV. Once at camp the other children exited, but the toddler remained in the car. Police are not sure why the toddler didn’t exit, guessing he may have fallen asleep. Lebovits did not realize he was still in the car, Bracken said, and drove home. She reached her home at 10:30 a.m. and entered her home where she remained until shortly before 2 p.m. at which time she went to return some items to the Home Depot. After exiting the hardware store she realized the boy was still in the car, grabbed him and ran into the Home Depot where Vazquez and Gallos helped her.

Galos, who volunteered as an EMT in Bloomfield for 12 years, was at the store to pick up paints for a friend. He said he’s not a religious man, calling himself a "Christmas Catholic," but said he believes that "God works in strange ways."

The Rutherford resident said he was in the store headed for the cashier when he heard someone yell out "call 911."

"I did what I was trained to do," Galos said, "I dropped everything and ran to help." He said he touched the baby who felt as "hot as a match" and he and Vazquez asked for someone to run and get ice cold water and some rags. In the meantime he said he began CPR with him giving the child breaths and Vazquez doing compressions. Galos said they poured water on the child and continued CPR until Clifton emergency responders arrived.

"When I finally stood up and looked around there wasn’t a dry eye anywhere," Galos said. "Everyone was concerned and everybody was rooting for the baby."

He said he tried to speak to Lebovits, but she was "inconsolable."

When asked how he felt to be called a hero, he said he just did what he was trained to do and was real glad he was there to help.

"In a world where no one cares, know that Eddie and Stanley cared," Galos said, adding "We got together and we saved a baby," said the 55-year-old who said he has no children of his own, but is a "favorite uncle."

Vazquez, a 39-year-old father of three (19, 13 and 11) who owns his own contracting business, was in Home Depot with his 11-year-old son looking for a hammer. He said he is a regular customer of the Home Depot and had been there about 25 minutes when he heard screaming.

"I was with my son and we heard some screaming so I ran up to the front to see what was going on. I thought someone was getting beat up or something," Vazquez said.

"I ran up to the front. A lady was running around with a baby, but he was limp. People were screaming "put him down, put him down," she wouldn’t put him down so I grabbed the baby, someone else grabbed the lady," he said.

Vazquez said the baby was unconscious and he was certain he was dead.

Another woman was trying to administer CPR but she was blowing too hard, he said, "so this other guy goes, ‘I know CPR,’ so I said ‘C’mon buddy, let’s do it real quick.’ So we started doing CPR," Vazquez said referring to Galos.

"Basically I was trying to revive this baby and get him some help," Vazquez said. He said his son has asthma and knows what it’s like when he starts "loosing breaths."

After three sessions of CPR and putting water on the boy, which took only about a few minutes, he felt a puff of air coming from the baby.

"After the third session of putting water on him, I felt him breathe on his own, he said, adding "He came back very lightly. Short breaths are better than no breaths."

When asked why he decided to help, he said: "I mean, if you know CPR, why not? I was just trying to help." He said he learned CPR when he was 20 and worked as the prep-guy in the operating room for about eight months, getting the room ready and sitting in on operations.

Vazquez said he’s no hero. "You know what? I was there at the right time and so were the other people who helped."

Bracken said the toddler was dehydrated and had a temperature of 102.6 when EMTs reached him.

"(Lebovits) was hysterical," Bracken said, of the caretaker. He said the parents were contacted right away and as of Tuesday night they were traveling back home from Vermont.

Lebovits was questioned at police headquarters and released on Tuesday night after she was charged with endangering the welfare of a child under the neglect and abandonment provision.

Bracken said Lebovits and the toddler’s families live in Passaic Park and are part of a close-knit Orthodox Jewish community who help each other out. He said members of the community have come out in support of Lebovits who may face jail time.

Sharon Shloss, a neighbor, said Lebovits "is the best." She said, "She is one of the most amazing mothers. She’s beloved by all, not just on the block, but in the whole community." Shloss said she can’t imagine Lebovits facing jail time, "she just can’t." Everyone in the community feels the same, Shloss said, adding many have been visiting with her all day.

Bracken said he doesn’t know what will happen to Lebovits, but said the fact that she has no previous criminal record will help.

Police did not release the name of the toddler and his family.