It’s all too easy to become disillusioned with the world as it is today. We turn on our televisions in the morning, or scroll through news headlines on our phones at breakfast, and despair seems to be a common theme.
We would be forgiven for having thought that by this day and age, we’d have eradicated most of the things that have plagued human society since as far back as anyone cares to go.
Sadly, we haven’t, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t hope if one chooses to look for it. Sure, the news would have you believe that chaos reigns, that vice and crime have become pillars of our greatest nations. But that’s not necessarily the case.
We here at Newsner are committed to bringing you all types of stories, the good and the bad, but our jobs are made that much easier when we stumble upon heartwarming happenings that can serve as a reminder that there remain good people out there.
We’re talking about the everyday individuals who go out of their way to help others, who perform acts of incredible kindness and compassion not because they have to, but because they want to.
Three young boys, Devonte Cafferkey, Sammy Farah and Shawn Young, are deserved of high praise indeed with this in mind.
It’s fairly normal for teenagers to be so wrapped up in their own world that they miss much of what goes on around them. Stuck in a transitionary period, still learning about life as they evolve into adulthood, most teens are forgiven for not doing much but enjoying themselves.
Fortunately, Devonte, 13, Sammy, 14, and Shawn, 12, happened to be in the right place at the right time one day in 2018. Moreover, they acted when they needed to, and in doing so undoubtedly saved the life of a man who thought himself ready to die.
The three boys were reportedly on their way home from school when they spotted a 21-year-old man sitting on the edge of an overpass with a rope around his neck.
Tragically, the man in question was about to try and take his own life.
His guardian angels, though, weren’t going to let that happen.
“We saw him on the other side of the bridge and then he had a rope around his neck. And then me and Sammy, we grabbed him and pulled him back,” Shawn explained to Steve Harvey.
They also told how they continually talked to him in an effort to convince him to stay away from the edge.
Steve asked Sammy: “Were you worried about saying the wrong thing?”
“Yeah, I was worried,” Sammy replied. “I was crying. I don’t see anyone dying. We told him that you have a family. Don’t do this, you are young.”
The words were a last-ditch attempt at comfort, but the man decided to jump anyway. That’s when Devonte, Sammy, and Shawn, grabbed onto him and physically held him away from the edge.
“The man was passing out and got heavier for them,” Shawn’s mother, Carol said.
Shawn called for help while Devonte and Sammy struggled to keep the man from taking his own life. The authorities arrived in the nick of time, and a life was saved.
Unsurprisingly, the teen trio were recognized for their extraordinary courage and quick-thinking. All three received certificates from the Royal Human Society, signed by none other than Queen Elizabeth of England.
“I am extremely proud of all three of them, they are all good boys and it’s nice that they are getting recognized for doing something good in the community,” Carol added.
“They were coming from school and loitering around, Shawn was telling them to hurry up. If they had been messing around a bit longer, who knows what they would have come and met instead? I feel like they were meant to be there to help him.”
Thank you, Devonte, Sammy, and Shawn. It truly warms my heart to know that there are yet heroes amongst the younger generations.
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