NY, 2007: Rescue of a man in seizure

January 14, 2007

An Enduring Act of Heroism 496.2

In the first week of 2007, Wesley Autrey, a 50-year-old Harlem

construction worker, had just passed through a turnstile at a New York

subway station with his daughters, ages 4 and 6, when he saw a man on

the platform having a seizure. He tried to help, but the man stumbled

and fell between the tracks.

Autrey asked two women to watch his daughters and jumped down to help

the fallen man, who was still in a state of seizure, flailing his arms.

Autrey was unable to get him back to the platform. When the lights of

an oncoming train began to thunder toward them, he had enough time to

jump to safety, but he didn't. Instead, he threw the man to the ground

and pushed him into a shallow trough between the tracks. Lying as flat

as he could, he held the man as the train roared over them. It cleared

their bodies by two inches.

It was an extraordinary act of courage that inspired and uplifted New

York City for a brief moment. Autrey was hailed as a hero, received

$15,000 in reward money, and became a national celebrity. After his 15

minutes of fame, media attention died down, and this father of two

returned to his life, which had been changed forever by this bright

shining moment.

Forever more, all who know or will meet Wesley Autrey will hear and

tell this story, which will stand as a monument symbolizing the best

and noblest qualities of humankind. His selfless act of bravery not

only saved the life of a stranger, it created a priceless legacy for

his daughters and all those who will proudly claim they know him.

It was a great way to start the New Year.

This is phson reminding you that character counts.

Mit freundlichen Gruessen

Katharina Gutsche

Sincerely,

Katharina

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Katharina Gutsche, M.A. Psycholinguistics, Dipl.-Psych.Clinical Psychology,

State Licensured Naturopath (Psychotherapy)

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