Heroes Nomination Information for 2011

Your Local American Red Cross Heroes 2010

Teen Rescue - JJ Larson and six friends perform an emergency medical rescue at a swimming pool, saving the life of Bailee Robinson.  The girl suffered a seizure and sank to the bottom of the pool. The group of friends pulled her out of the water, called 911 and JJ put her in a rescue position.  Others guided the EMTs to the pool. Click Here for the full story. The youth are awarded the Medical Rescue Award sponsored by Hays Insurance www.hayscompanies.com

Tanya Shroeder – Imagine throwing yourself in front of a train to save the life of a child. But the train is a 90-pound pit bull.  Tanya disregarded her own personal safety to save a four-year old and her own two children from an angry dog that broke through their fence and waged war on them in their backyard. At one point, the pit bull had the four-year old pinned to the ground by the neck. Tanya pried the dog off of the child.  The brave mom suffered many bites and braved a series of attacks from the pit bull, but in the end, they all reached safety.  Click Here for the full story. She earns the Family Hero Award sponsored by KSL Televison www.ksl.com

100 First Aid Kits – Salt Lake City Fire Station 8 joined the International Aid Servicing Kids to assemble 100 First Aid Kits to give to locals in Haiti .  Captain Rick Black travelled to Haiti where he delivered the kits, treated 1300 villagers (57% of them children) and instructed first aid to locals.   At the time, they had no idea Haiti would soon suffer a devastating earthquake. Click Here for the full story. This group receives the International Good Samaritan award sponsored by MonaVie www.monavie.com

Shooting Victim - Rueben Martinez suffered from a life-altering incident. He was mistaken for a gang member and brutally shot. After months in the hospital and multiple surgeries, he could have retaliated with anger, but instead joined efforts to help troubled youth in his community.  He diligently served as a leader for other teens at Youth Works. Click Here for the full story. He is the Youth Good Samaritan, the award is sponsored by Regence BlueCross BlueShield www.ut.regence.com

Radio to the Rescue - Hal Whiting was in the middle of nowhere near the Arizona border when someone flagged him down for help. An ATV accident victim was seriously injured, help was far away and cell phones were out of range. Hal used his ham radio equipment and his training to get help and save a life. Click Here for the full story. Hal receives the Wilderness Award sponsored by Parr Brown Gee and Loveless www.parrbrown.com

The Park City 5 –Coincidentally, five moms in Park City lose their teens to a variety of unexpected deaths in a short period of time.  They band together to mourn and to honor their lost children.  The moms raise funds and build a needed school in Ecuador . Now, the group has raised enough to build a total of five schools.  Click Here for the full story. They receive the International Good Samaritan Award sponsored by Kern River

Kathy Jo Hall – 911 dispatcher Kathy Jo Hall helped two men whose boat capsized on the Great Salt Lake in January 2009.  Hall’s calming influence in a dramatic 911 call made it possible to get GPS coordinates to the rescuers. Click Here for the full story. Kathy Jo is the Law Enforcement Hero spnosored by Utah Disaster Kleenup www.udksolutions.com

On the Road – D riving home from work, Jason D ay saw a car on fire with a woman inside. He braved the fire and a possible explosion to pull her from the car to safety. He and another unidentified man on the scene tried to put out the fire, but four minutes after the woman was free from the car, it erupted in flames.  Click Here for the full story. Jason is awarded the Adult Good Samarian Award sponsored by Wells Fargo www.wellsfargo.com 

Preparedness Team – Taylorsville Volunteers Donna Pitman & Lisa Schwartz prepared their community for a large catastrophic disaster.  D onna led the efforts and serves as the volunteer chair for public safety and Lisa divided the city into sections and prepared a team of individuals to be able to respond when needed. Click Here for the full story. They win the Community Safety Hero Award sponsored by Tesoro www.tesoro.com

Military Might – Sgt. Brady Johnson was headed for a family picnic in American Fork Canyon , when he came upon an emergency in the midst of a bike racing event on the road. He helped save the life of cyclist D ave Collins after a bicycle/SUV accident. Others on the scene thought D ave was deceased. But Brady and others used medic skills to assess the injuries and get the man breathing again. Dave had a gash from his jugular all the way to his sternum. Brady packed Dave’s wounds with gauze and held them in place to prevent him from bleeding to death until medics arrived.  Click Here for the full story. Brady receives the Military Hero Award sponsored by Smith's Marketplace. www.smithsfoodanddrug.com

School Bus Nightmare – A school bus loaded with children on a field trip is rolling down the interstate in the St. George area.  The bus driver has a medical emergency.  A teacher and two  chaperones work to get the bus to the side of the road safely.  Children’s lives were saved.  Click Here for the full story. Jan and Laura Graf and Ben Smith are awarded the Adult Good Samaritan Award sponsored by OC Tanner www.octanner.com

Lifetime Achievement – Each year several heroes are honored by the American Red Cross. Only one of them receives a special award for a lifetime of heroic achievement.  This year, that award goes to Paula Green Johnson who has served her community for 25 years as a volunteer.  Paula has helped several worthy causes.  She has personally led major projects, taken on leadership roles, and helped save many children in Africa by supporting the International Red Cross Measles Initiative. She even travelled to Ghana to help with the project.   She serves by leading and mentoring. She was selected as this year’s Lifetime Achievement Award winner for sharing her time, treasure and many talents with the American Red Cross and other local nonprofit organizations. Click Here for the full story. This award is sponsored by UnitedHeathcare www.uhc.com

Selection Information - The finalists were chosen by a special Selection Committee made up of the following members:  Governor Gary R. Herbert, Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Carroon, Pastor France Davis - Calvary Baptist Church , Natalie Gochnour - COO Salt Lake Chamber, and Lynn Samsel - Director of Emergency Services, LDS Humanitarian Services.

2010 -- videos of this year's amazing heroes

2009 -- For 10 heartwarming profile stories and videos about this past year's heroes click here.

How to Nominate a Hero for 2011