‘They Are My Heroes’: Georgia Middle Schoolers Save Bus Driver’s Life During Stroke
On. Oct. 1, a bus full of students was en route to East Paulding Middle School in Dallas, Georgia when their bus driver, Julie Williamson, began feeling sick. She was able to safely pull the bus to the side of the road, and seventh graders Conner Doss and Kane Daugherty ran to the front of the bus.
“I come in the aisle, and then I look down and Miss Julie’s face is just bright red and shaking,” Doss told local Atlanta station WSB-TV.
Doss kept the other students calm and directed them to the back of the bus while Daugherty assisted Williamson.
“I hear her say, ‘Hey! Somebody help!’ So I run up. She’s over here shaking really bad,” Daugherty recalled. “I picked up the [radio dispatch] and said, ‘Somebody help. Somebody help, our bus drive feels really dizzy.'”
A dispatcher called the bus’s phone and instructed Daugherty on how to set the emergency brake, flashing lights and flashing stop sign. The dispatcher then called 911.
“We know she’s got diabetes, so we thought maybe it was an attack. We got her to drink Coke, eat cookies, and all of that,” Daugherty said.
The two students opened a bus window and began waving down passing cars, hoping someone would stop to help before the ambulance arrived. A pastor pulled over, ran onto the bus and gathered the students to pray while waiting for the ambulance.
“That was a moment of relief, I think, for Ms. Julie and for us too to know God was on our side,” Daugherty said.
Williamson is now at home recovering from what doctor’s believe was a mini stroke thanks to the boys’ heroic efforts. Conner and Kane were recognized at the Board of Education meeting on Oct. 12.
“I am incredibly proud of Kane and Conner for jumping into action to help their bus driver and make sure their classmates were safe,” East Paulding Principal Tom Alverson wrote in an email to Southern Living.
“Without them stepping up and saying what they did, I don’t necessarily know if I’d be here today. They deserve the world,” said Williamson. “They are my heroes.”
Image source: Yahoo News
Previous
