For many of us Easter Sunday is a day to spend with family. We get dressed up and go to church, hunt eggs with the kids, and eat ham. But for a Myakka City man, Easter is a day to remember something very different.
Last year on Easter, Levi Teuton was driving home with his wife Ericka to get the eggs ready for his daughter to hunt. Levi saw a cloud of smoke and as they got closer he realized that it was a pickup truck on fire. He got out of his vehicle to be sure that there was nobody inside the truck. Unfortunately, there were two people trapped inside the vehicle. He assured his wife that since the truck was already on fire, he was not in danger of an explosion. He attempted to pull the 15 year old passenger who was pleading for his life from the truck. When he was pulling the teen out of the window a propane tank exploded and knocked both of them free from the burning truck. The teen had burns and a broken leg but was alive with no smoke inhalation. Levi received many burns that would not allow him to go back to work for six months and would cause him to rely on a walker for a few months. The driver of the truck died in the fire.
While this would scare most of us, Levi says he would do it all over again. He doesn’t view himself as a hero, but instead gives credit to God for putting him there at the right time to save the teen. Levi has since gone back to work and back to his regular daily routine. Now, a year later, as he remembers a day that changed his life, he has something to look forward to. He will be one of the 24 people in the United States and Canada to receive the Carnegie Medal. The medal is awarded by the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission annually since 1904. It honors those who show acts of heroism as civilians. Levi will also receive a $5,000 grant for the act of kindness he showed.
This Easter Sunday, whether you spend it at church, with family, or just like any other day, we hope you will remember this story and give thanks for having a day to do all of these things. This story could have ended very differently, but Levi’s continued faith is an example to us all to know that we may be placed in hard situations for a greater cause.
