Rescued By Heroes After A Stall
Dear Pamela,
I wish a thunderous APPLAUSE to the men who helped me when my car stalled in the middle of Wilder Avenue by the Makiki Fire Station. Mr. J. Grissmerson was walking with his wife when he saw me trying to make sense of my situation. He approached my car and asked if he could help. What a wonderful human being! He and another passerby, Brian, moved my car to safety with the help of officers at the fire station. Before that, Brian got his car and moved it behind mine to warn other motorists of car trouble up ahead. Mr. Grissmerson went home to get his jumper cables. I am so grateful to those men and the guys at the Makiki Fire Station. I cannot fully express my gratitude to these people.
Vilma Fermin
Makiki
Dear Vilma,
You are fortunate to have thoughtful neighbors looking out for you. “My wife Erica and I were out walking the dogs, when we spotted Vilma’s car in the middle of the road,” says J. Grissmerson. “I’m a lifetime Boy Scout (Tiger and Eagle), so it’s second nature to help out.
Brian, who also lives in Makiki, could see how urgent it was to get her car out of traffic. “Vilma was so sweet. She sent us a thank-you card with a gift certificate and movie tickets. I was really taken aback. We really did not expect to be thanked in such a generous way.”
Dear Pamela,
I wanted to let everyone know there are good people in this world, and one of them is Albert Lazo of Straub hospital. I also work at Straub, and just two days before our “hurricanes” were supposed to hit, I lost my wallet somewhere between leaving work and walking to my car. For the next 48 hours, the wallet was all I could think about.
On the day of the storm, when everyone was held up in their homes waiting for the first hit, I got a knock on my door from Albert, who had found my wallet. I couldn’t believe it. My driver’s license, debit card, gift cards … they were all there!
Albert tracked me down by finding my address on my blood bank donor card and delivered it on the day of the storm no less! I was so relieved. Thank you so much, Albert, for going the extra mile to hand-deliver my wallet to me.
Jonathan Crosson
Kaneohe
Dear Jonathan,
Yvette Torres, Straub hospital manager of environmental services, says Albert always can be counted on to do the right thing. “He’s that kind of person, very honest and dedicated,” she says. “He is a perfect example of the kind of service we at Straub strive to maintain in the community and with our patients.”
Dear Pamela,
Forty years ago this month, Mike and I were married in Texas and heading back home to Japan. We decided to stop over in Hawaii and spend our honeymoon camping on a beach. We got a permit and took the bus to Makapuu. We set up camp, even though we did not really know how, but no matter, it was heaven.
The only other people there was a group toward the road with lights, barbecues and music, having a nice time.
When it was dark, I noticed that someone was peeking through the back flap window in the canvas. Mike didn’t think it was anything, but a few minutes later I noticed it again. Five seconds later, a fist-sized rock hit Mike on the forehead. He jumped out of the tent with his head bleeding. He did not see anyone around, so he went up to the group up the road. No one had seen anything. Mike walked back to our tent, then out of the darkness came this young man, who introduced himself as an off-duty policeman. He and his son were camping further down the beach. He offered to relocate our tent and set it up properly next to his. We gladly accepted and fell asleep calmly until the next morning, when we awoke to a friendly voice and a wonderful smell: “Wake up, lovebirds, breakfast is ready!” We had bacon and eggs at our doorstep!
To this day, we regret not having this savior’s name. We never were able to thank him for the lovely memories he created out of a potentially disastrous situation. We moved to Hawaii in 1985 and live close to Makapuu.
We think of him each time we drive by. We would love to find him and have him over for breakfast! Hopefully, he will read your column and contact us through you.
Mike and Sophie Hara
Hawaii Kai
Dear Mike and Sophie,
Forty years is a long time, but one is not likely to forget such an encounter of true aloha. If your anonymous angel recognizes this letter from the honeymooners from Japan, he can contact me at pyoung@kitv.com and I will give him your phone number.
pyoung@kitv.com
