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SpeechesRemarks of Governor Judy Martz CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY Thank you, Adjutant General Prendergast. It is an honor to join all of you today in celebration of the heroic actions taken by nine courageous Montanans this past year. How blessed we are to live in a state where people care about each other. Neighbors helping neighbors . . . it happens across the state and reflects a quality of life that draws people to our state. Today, we will recognize individuals who have offered more than neighborly aid. They have placed their own lives at risk in an attempt to save another person in a life and death situation. Two individuals have even given the ultimate sacrifice, their own life to save another. To the families of these two individuals, I extend a heartfelt thank you for coming today. It is difficult for most of us to imagine what we would do in the midst of a life-threatening emergency. There are those among us today who have lived through the terror of such an experience. It is a life-changing experience. These individuals are truly heroes, placing their own lives at risk to assist others. We owe them an enormous debt of gratitude. It is my pleasure to present two different awards today, the Governor's Special Recognition Award and the Montana Medal of Valor. First, I want to recognize the five Governor's Special Recognition Award recipients. These individuals have taken immediate and selfless action to assist others in 2000. As I say your name, please come forward. SHANE HERBST, MATT MARKWALD, ROGER PETERSEN AND TRAVIS PIERCE Our first honorees are four young men from Sidney. These four friends were enjoying a day of fun and sun at the Seven Sisters Recreation area along with the Shaver family. The Shaver family, including Kiara and Nathaniel, were enjoying the Yellowstone River when the adults became distracted. One adult was tending to their baby while the other with trying to re-capture their dog that had gotten loose. Travis Piece sprang into action when he noticed two young children were being swept away with the river current. He shouted for his friends to help, and they all ran about a city block to reach Kiara and Nathaniel. The children were in trouble of drowning when Travis rescued Nathaniel. Matt rescued Kiara by grabbing her hair and pulling her to shore with the help of Shane and Roger. I saw recently in the paper where a 17-year-old Sidney boy is missing and presumed drowned in the same area. Thank the Lord that Shane, Matt, Roger and Travis were there on the riverbank last July to prevent a similar tragedy. SPECIALIST KEVIN CHASSON A January day of ice fishing at Canyon Ferry Reservoir could have easily taken a tragic turn without the quick response of Kevin Chasson in helping save the life of Loyd Belville of Townsend. Loyd and fishing partner, Randy Plymale, were coming off the ice when Loyd's pickup broke through and sank. Loyd managed to unroll his pickup window and kicked his way to the surface. Randy, who was separately driving an amphibious ATV, piloted the ATV into the 30-foot crater of broken ice and water where he was able to pull Loyd out of the water. Kevin, seeing what was happening, took quick action by jumping on his own ATV and driving to where the two were in the water. He threw a rope to the men, and Randy was able to tie the rope under Loyd's arms. Kevin then pulled Loyd out of the water and quickly drove him to his heated icehouse. There, Kevin stripped Loyd from his soaked clothes and put him into coveralls. Kevin, trained by the National Guard in emergency response, kept Loyd warm and conscious until the ambulance arrived. Having told you of this near tragedy, I also want to recognize the other individual involved in the rescue of Loyd, Randy Plymale. Randy is one of our Medal of Valor Awards recipients. This honor is reserved for Montanans who have displayed extraordinary courage in a situation threatening the lives of one or more people. To be eligible for the Montana Medal of Valor, nominees must be a citizen of the State of Montana who, at risk of death, endeavored to save others from a life-threatening situation. RANDY PLYMALE As I reflected earlier, Randy was key in the rescue of his ice-fishing partner, Loyd Belville. What I didn't mention was that Randy can't swim. Despite this, there was no hesitation by him to pilot his ATV into the freezing water and pull Loyd up onto the ATV. According to Sheriff Rich Thompson, if Randy hadn't had his ATV out there Loyd would have drowned. "There's no doubt in my mind about that, and I don't think there's any doubt in Loyd's either." JOHN FIDLER John is a sixteen-year veteran of the Missoula Rural Fire Department. According to Bill Lindstrom, Missoula District Fire Chief, John went the extra mile when responding to a fire in Bonner by putting his own personal safety aside to rescue an unconscious woman from her burning mobile home. Last June while working alone in the Rural Fire's Piltzville station, John received a call on a trailer house fire. When he pulled the fire engine into the area, he said he could only see smoke and fire coming from a bedroom window. The window had been broken out by neighbors in an effort to get the trailer's resident, Madeline Merseal's attention. Knowing time was of the essence for a successful rescue, John donned his self-breathing apparatus and entered the house. John elected to risk entering alone, disregarding a departmental safety policy - two firefighters in and two firefighters out - because he believed he could save a life. Once inside, he checked the kitchen and bedroom inching his way back to the front of the trailer. He entered the living room, where increased smoke made it very difficult to see, and found Mrs. Merseal lying unconscious underneath a blanket on the couch. While the home burned around him, he cradled her head and shoulders on his arms and pulled her out the door and onto the porch. She was unresponsive but breathing, so John quickly took off his gear and ran to retrieve his medical equipment from the engine. As he started to assist Mrs. Merseal, the Missoula Emergency Services ambulance personnel arrived and began rendering aid. John was honored with a $100 heroism award by Firehouse Magazine and was featured in the magazine's April edition. Mrs. Merseal was treated for her injuries in Missoula and Seattle. She has returned to Missoula, but has no memory of the fire. GEMINA SCHULTZ AND JEFF THIEL Gemina and Jeff embody what the Medal of Valor stands for in this state. As defined by state statute, the Medal of Valor is to be awarded to individuals who, at the risk of personal injury or death, endeavor to save others from a life-threatening situation. Gemina and Jeff gave the ultimate sacrifice - their lives - last July near the Ulm Bridge. I would ask that their families please join me up front as I relate this sad story. It was a Montana summer evening. Families and friends were wading, swimming and relaxing along the banks of the Missouri. Gemina, age 16, was in the river, wading in the water with her younger brother, Brian, and her sister, Angela when the sandbar dropped off underneath their feet pulling them into the strong current. Angela was immediately pulled underwater by the current. Gemina was able to locate her beloved sister in the murky water and kept her out of the water by holding her sister atop of her own head. Perhaps she could have used her one of her arms to try to save herself while holding Angela, but Gemina didn't try to swim herself - her sister's life and safety came first. As many as six people scrambled to save Gemina and her siblings. The three children were pulled to the bank, but Gemina wasn't breathing. Nancy O'Connor, who happens to be the mother in-law of Jeff Thief, performed CPR on Gemina. Unfortunately, Gemina died two days later from complications. One of individuals who attempted to save Gemina was 33 year old Jeff Thiel. Jeff, who witnessed the tragedy from the bank, dove into the water to save Gemina. Although Jeff was a strong outdoor person, the swift current pulled him under too. Volunteers formed a human chain and walked the Missouri channel in search of Jeff. Jeff's family members from Great Falls, Missoula, Oregon, South Dakota and Nevada kept vigil along the riverbank until searchers recovered his body three days later. The kind hearted Jeff left behind his wife, three children and two stepchildren. I want to thank the recipients, families and friends for attending today's event. I also want to thank the Centre Stage Quartet: Karen Berger, Barb Leland, Marlene Petersen and Kathe Schmit for volunteering their musical talents with us. Adjutant General Predergast, the Montana National Color Guard, and three very fine ladies, June Rychalski, Colleen Stricker and Mary Tyson, who host our reception that we will have now. Thank you all for coming and God bless all of you. -END- |
