The seven-year-old rescued from the pool by two boys as oblivious adults swam by, whooped in delight as he was awarded by his local sheriff.
He had stopped breathing and turned blue before being rescued, the sheriff said.
Griffin Emerson, was swimming at an apartment complex's pool in Fenton, Michigan, when he got into danger.
Distressing CCTV recording shows Griffin struggling to keep his head above water after removing his inflatable armbands.
Oblivious to the peril he was in, adults continued swimming, leaving Griffin submerged for nearly a minute before he was rescued.
Describing the incident County Sheriff Chris Swanson said: "There were two heroes that saw this. And unbeknownst to anyone they jumped into the pool, picked up this seven-year-old, dragged him to the side. The seven-year-old wasn't breathing. He was blue and he was lifeless."
The sheriff gave the two boys who rescued Griffin along with Griffing himself an award for what they went through.
In an adorable video, Griffin takes the envelope of the money and whoops: "I'm rich!"
Laughs can be heard from those gathered there.
He was eventually saved when Noah Roche, 12, and his eight-year-old brother, Weston Woods, noticed Griffin's distress and promptly sprang into action.
Noah recalled spotting Griffin at the bottom of the pool and sensing that something was wrong.
Noah said: "I saw him and I just knew that he wasn't OK.
"I saw him at the bottom of the pool and then I didn't know if he was just playing down there or something. So I just told Weston to get in and dive down to see if he's OK."
Weston added: "His head was going up and down. I knew he wasn't OK.”
The child's distraught mum realised what happened, she jumped up and started CPR on her son.
The boy was rushed to hospital but thankfully released less than 36 hours later.
Acting swiftly, Weston dove in, grasped Griffin, and brought him to the surface before carrying him to safety.
Griffin's mother, Sylese Roche, dialled 911, informing the operator that her son had turned blue and stopped breathing.
Speaking in the sheriff's video, Griffin said: "I was at the pool and I tried taking my floaties off. But i went to the deep end with my goggles on. My goggles kept me floating but I was stuck underwater. They helped me. He helped me."
As Griffin's mum awaited emergency assistance, she promptly performed CPR on Griffin, successfully reviving him.
Expressing his fear during the ordeal, Griffin said: "I was scared I was gonna drown. It felt all weird. I spit out some water and that's it."
Sheriff Christopher Swanson of Genesee County praised Noah and Weston as the heroes of the day, commending their swift action.
