NEWFANE, N.Y. — Two eighth-graders at Newfane Middle School are being called heroes after they quickly sprung into action to help a woman and her dog in distress.
Liam Hedley and Hunter Marcello will be honored by the school district for what they did on July 3 at Newfane Marina. That's where they had been fishing and "inspecting the upcoming fireworks display."
They boys spotted a pink kayak that had overturned in the water. A woman waved her arms in the air, attempting to get help from people nearby, the Newfane Central School District said in a statement Thursday.
"She had a large white dog with her that was paddling toward the shore," Hunter said.
The boys ran to a business owned by Liam's father, Headley Boat Company, where the three grabbed a dinghy in an attempt to rescue the woman and her dog.
"It took us about three tries to get her in," Liam said.
The school district said the woman was turning blue and coughing up water when they pulled her into the boat. The woman was taken to pier, where and ambulance and EMTs were waiting to provide medical attention.
The woman was taken to a hospital, where she was treated for "some broken ribs from the multiple attempts to get her into the boat, and to make sure there was no other damage from her near drowning," the school district said.
A family member the woman was kayaking with retrieved the dog and brought it to safety.
"My dad was shaking because he had to use so much strength to get her into the boat," Liam said.
Hunter added, "It was very nerve wracking for all of us."
Liam and Hunter will be honored during a board of education meeting. They recently met with Superintendent Jay Lupini and talked about their love of fishing.
Middle School Principal Keith Crombie said he was proud of his students' bravery.
"Luckily both these students love the water and would spend morning, noon and night there if they could. If they hadn’t been there, we don’t know what would have happened," Crombie said.
