Hero Unaware

What does a Hero look like? Could you be a Hero? I feel that they are walking among us every day. God might send you a Hero that looks like a stranger or a friend. For my family it was a stranger that we had never met, but he changed our lives forever.

On August 28, 1993, my family was in a horrible motor home accident. I was able to escape through a hole in the vehicle wall; our daughter was thrown upon impact out the front window. My husband, Rusty, was stuck in his seat belt unable to release it. The sky was filled with black smoke causing freeway drivers to slowly creep by, backing traffic for miles. The big trucks were lined up, and people just traveling north to their destinations stared in disbelief in what they were seeing. Many were frozen in place standing along the freeway not knowing what to do. I can’t imagine the horror they felt as they heard our daughter screaming for help for her family. The fiery inferno burned so quickly that by the time she landed in front of our traveling home there were no walls standing. All she could see was her father in flames trying to get his seat beat off. She did not see me crawl out of the back of the motor home.

Out of the people that were frozen along the road was a man named Mark. He had no ideal of the impact he would play on our family that memorable day. He grabbed hold of his brown wool Australian hat and ran toward what was left of the burned wreckage. He could see a man struggling to get out; Mark pulled his hat down tightly and grabbed the charred body inside. The heat was so intense and the man’s skin was melting off. Mark had to let go. He took another deep breath of air and once again entered into the hell. This time he took hold of the man’s clothing and pulled him out. He carried the smoking image up to the road and laid him down. Mark yelled for someone to watch Rusty while Mark grabbed a first aid kit out of his truck. As he walked from his truck, he could see a black charred smoking image walking across the freeway. My husband had literally got up and was walking down the road. The nightmares the people on that road must have had seeing such a sight.

The emergency vehicle arrived, and we were all taken to the closest hospital to be stabilized and then onto the burn center. While we were being treated, our Hero, Mark, was being questioned and given first aid for his burned hands.

Many months went by before we knew about our hero Mark. My husband’s mother had called him several times to thank him for saving her son’s life. He kept in touch with her on our progress. I don’t remember when we exactly met Mark, but I know we all cried a lot and felt a brotherhood like we had never felt before. We all quickly became friends and spent much time together.

Even though we live many miles away from each other, our hearts are connected. Because of a horrible incident, God has brought something good…a new brother in our family. We seem to know when each other has a need, and we either call or check in some way.

We will be forever thankful for this wonderful man that changed our lives that day. Mark’s fateful HAT now hangs in our bunkhouse, and our grandchildren know that their grandfather would not be here today if it weren’t for a man, they call Uncle Mark.

Have you ever wondered how you would respond if you came upon an emergency situation? Would you be frozen in place or would you be a Hero like Mark? I want to believe that I would try to help, but none of us knows that unless the opportunity comes along.

Here are some practical ways we can be prepared to make that choice.

1. Keep a complete first aid kit in your car, including a first aid book
2. Have an aluminum blanket available.
3. Water
4. Fire extinguisher
5. Learn CPR