Heroes’ valor heralded

As United States Marines, Matthew Castaneda and Ricardo Montalvo are trained to act decisively in life-threatening situations, even when they’re off duty. For that, J.J. Sorenson will be eternally grateful, as will the Kiwanis International Foundation, which awarded the two men Robert P. Connelly Medals for Heroism.

Matthew Castaneda (right) speaks after receiving a citation from Oceanside, California, Mayor Jim Woods (left). Between them is J.J. Sorensen, the woman whose life Castaneda and Richard Montalvo saved to earn them Robert P. Connelly Medals for Heroism.

On an early summer morning about a year ago, Castaneda and Montalvo, both corporals, were on their way to work on a ranch when they eyed a car parked alongside the interstate with smoke and flames coming out from under the hood. They pulled over, ran to the car, and spotted Sorenson, who is handicapped, struggling to get out of her car. The interior of the car was filled with smoke.

Working together, the two pulled the woman from the car and carried her a safe distance away. Sorenson was showing typical signs of trauma, but Montalvo sensed something else might be wrong and asked her if she is diabetic. She confirmed his suspicions and told them she needed her insulin, which was in a cooler in her car.

Castaneda bolted to the car and retrieved the cooler from the front seat, which by now was engulfed in flames. He also checked the fuel gauge and discovered the car had a full tank of gas. He ran the cooler back to Sorenson and then, using fire extinguishers given to him by the drivers of two semi-tractor trailer trucks, was able to suppress the fire until a commercial farming irrigation truck with a full tank of water stopped to finish the job.

Soon after, police and fire rescue teams arrived and took command of the scene; so, the two Marines drove Sorenson home and helped her notify relatives.

The Oceanside Pacific Kiwanis club nominated them for the Connelly awards. Their medals were among several issued during the Foundation Board’s meeting prior to the start of the recent Kiwanis International convention in Montréal, Québec. Others honored include:

• Stephen Knight, off-duty officer of the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary, who saved a person from a knife-wielding attacker. He was nominated by the Kiwanis Club of Cabot, St. John’s, Newfoundland.

• Edward Marsette, who pulled three people to safety from an overturned automobile. The Auburn, Washington, Kiwanis club nominated him for the award.

• Sixteen-year-old Nathan McPartlin, who saved the life of a 57-year-old woman whose car was stuck on a railroad track in the path of an oncoming train. He was nominated by the Kiwanis Club of Grosse Ile, Michigan.

• Kyle Jonathon Musser, a 14-year-old who rescued two children from a burning car. The Charlotte, Michigan, Kiwanis club nominated him for the award.

• Atsushi Ohta, who was struck and killed by a car while rescuing someone involved in a separate automobile accident. He was nominated by the Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan, Kiwanis club.