A Ritchie County mother has a lot to be proud about. On August 11th 2003, a 9 year old boy heard a crash and a horn beeping after his mother of 4 had taken the family truck to hunt for the children's dog. He immediately dialed 911 because he knew something was wrong. The boy went out on the porch with the cordless phone and finally heard his mother calling for him.

His mother had went up the neighbor's driveway on the hill above their house, where the truck had stalled. Without power brakes or steering, the truck rolled back down the hill uncontrollably, coming to rest on it's driver side. She was trapped beneath the wheel, with gasoline streaming out of the tank and running right underneath her open window.

The young man was able to give the 911 telecommunicator very good directions to his house, and to the private road where the accident had happened. He also ran several hundred feet up a steep hill with the cordless phone to check on his mother, who was drifting in and out of consciousness.

Emergency crews arrived within several minutes, and the mother was extracted from the truck and then transported to the hospital, where she was treated for her injuries and released.

Due to young mans immediate reaction to dial 911, his composer during the emergency, and his ability to give clear and accurate directions to the accident, the staff of Central Communications chose to award him with the organization's first Young Hero award. The award was presented to him at the 911 Center on August 25th by the Telecommunicator who actually received the call, with the EMS crew who responded to the call also in presence. The ceremony was attended by his mother and one of his brothers, several of the staff of CCI, representatives of both of Ritchie County's newspapers. and WBOY from Clarksburg.

The boy was also presented a Gift Certificate courtesy of the P&H Restaurant in Pennsboro, for dinner and desert to include all members of the family, and after the ceremony, the boy and his brother were treated to a personnel viewing of the inner working of an ambulance.