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Jan 4, 2007

"True heroism is remarkably sober, very undramatic. It is not the urge to surpass all others at whatever cost, but the urge to serve others at whatever cost." --Arthur Ashe

Risking Life to Save a Life

Would you risk your life to save a stranger? Most of us have reflected on the question theoretically; Wesley Autrey faced it in real life. Autrey, a 50-year-old construction worker and Navy veteran, was waiting with his two young daughters at a New York subway station when, nearby, 20 year-old Cameron Hollopeter had a seizure, stumbled to the platform edge and fell directly into the path of an oncoming train. "I had to make a split decision," said Autrey. So he made one, and leapt. Unable to stop in time, five carriages of the train thundered a mere couple of inches over them. Both men survived with no serious injuries. While stunned spectators cheered and lauded Autrey as a hero, he shrugged off the praise. "I don’t feel like I did something spectacular; I just saw someone who needed help," he told the Times. "I did what I felt was right."