Today is Good Friday, and I was blessed to witness goodness today.
After beginning the morning participating in my church’s Good Friday prayer chain, I headed out to complete several errands. My to-do list started with an oil change. I headed to Speedy’s on Dayton Pike (across from Sonic), and was probably three minutes into my service when a commotion was heard from a school bus parking lot behind the business.
A loud noise was followed by shouting. I didn’t immediately realize what had happened, but apparently a contractor was working under his bus when it slid off the jack and trapped him.
What I witnessed next was nothing short of heroic.
The three young men working at Speedy’s dropped everything - tools, notebooks, towels, an air pump - and SPRINTED towards the bus.
One of them quite literally ran out of his shoes… but that didn’t slow him down as he continued across the gravel parking lot. While they couldn’t lift the bus off of him, they comforted him and worked to relieve some of the pressure until rescue crews arrived on site.
Obviously, my oil change was not a priority at this point, and the young man who came back to retrieve his shoes told me I would have to come back later. I was happy to do so as they tended to the injured man.
When I returned, I learned several things. Most importantly, the victim was going to survive. Also, I learned that the manager at Speedy’s knew all of the bus contractors who parked behind the business, and he had wandered over to talk to this one. He was the person who shouted for help, which was the beginning of a chain of events that undoubtedly saved this man’s life. You see, he could not reach his cell phone, and he could not make enough noise to call for help.
The next thing I learned was that another woman had pulled in for an oil change during this emergency. She was a nurse. She attended to the injured man immediately until first responders arrived to extricate him from under the bus.
So, I have a few takeaways on this Good Friday.
1) Most people are inherently good.
2) God puts people where they are supposed to be in accordance with His plan.
3) Angels come in all shapes and sizes… including three young bearded men with multiple piercings and tattoos. NEVER judge others.
Happy Easter, everyone.
Stacy E. Stewart
Hixson