Teens don face of courage

What does a hero look like?

Residents in Clearwater County, Idaho, know exactly what heroes look like. And lately, they’ve looked a lot like normal teenagers.

This past year, three young men stepped up in two separate instances, risking their own lives to save others.

Jeremy Engle, Kyle Kingen, and Seth DeBusk all risked injury—possibly death—and were awarded the Robert P. Connelly Award of Heroism by the Kiwanis International Foundation. The nominating club, the Kiwanis Club of Orofino, Idaho, was featured in an online news article in Orofino after the men became the fourth, fifth, and sixth from Clearwater County to be named Connelly Medal recipients.

“In each instance, these young men placed themselves in harm’s way far beyond what is expected of any of us,” wrote Orofino Kiwanis club member Jack W. Crites in his nomination letter.

When Jeremy Engle saw a young man holding a dangling wire and shaking during a track meet, he knew something was terribly wrong. While other track competitors just watched—some thought it was a prank—Engle stepped up and grabbed the boy’s legs and pulled as hard as he could.

Both boys fell free of the wire, which had become “hot” because of an electrical short-circuit.

Engle’s story made the newspapers. He told a reporter: “It was probably the worst shock I’ve had in my life.”

About a month later, two more soon-to-be heroes were in the right place at the right time.

When Kyle Kingen and Seth DeBusk heard an explosion in a neighboring house, they went to investigate. They heard cries for help coming from inside. That’s when they jumped into action. Upon entering the burning home, they helped a husband and wife, both 84, escape. DeBusk later told a newspaper reporter he didn’t really think about his own safety, he just knew he had to get the couple out of there.

In addition to the award, each recipient received a US$500 savings bond.

The Robert P. Connelly Medal for Heroism is awarded through the Kiwanis International Foundation to persons who risk physical harm or death by accepting personal responsibility when they might just have passed along the way. To read about the honor’s namesake, Robert P. Connelly, or to access a nomination form for the award, click here.