Good Samaritan helps Hot Springs teen after drunk driver crash

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. - A Hot Springs mom is asking for the public’s help to find a Good Samaritan who comforted her 16-year-old son after he was hit by a drunk driver.

Timie Yancey posted on Facebook Monday, looking for a man named Cole who worked at the Citgo in Hot Springs at the time of her son’s April 10 wreck.

"It's a call you never want to get as a parent,” Timie said in an interview Monday. “It is the worst feeling in the world.”

For any mom, getting a call from a child in the early morning hours is a nightmare. For Timie, it came from her young, new driver who was on his way to work out in Hot Springs.

Her son, Hudson, was hit by a drunk driver about ten minutes from their home. He was hit from behind, and the crash was so hard he was pushed past two lanes of oncoming traffic into a light pole. Hot Springs Police confirm that the driver who hit Hudson was arrested on the scene for driving under the influence.

Hudson is okay, though he told KARK that without a Good Samaritan named Cole, he might not have been…at least, emotionally.

“That was probably the scariest moment of my life,” Hudson said. “No one was there to help me, even though I am a 16-year-old kid. I did not know what to do.”

Hudson said the only person there to help him was Cole, who worked inside the nearby gas station.

Hudson had been in there many times before, but never in a time like this.

“I remember going in, and I had my shirt off to hold the blood, so I did not get blood all over his floor,” Hudson said. “He gave me a hug while I had blood all over me and dripping blood…and at the time he did not know me that well.”

He said Cole also went to find Hudson’s phone and called his parents and the police.

Surveillance video from the gas station brings back a wide range of emotions for the Yancey family.

“For me, the hardest part was watching the surveillance video,” Timie said. “He just looks like a little kid again.”

Timie is hoping to track down Cole, as a result. While he worked at the Citgo at the time of the wreck, they cannot find him now.

“We want to give him a thank you card, and I got him a gift certificate,” Timie said. “I want him to have a nice dinner on us.”

Hudson said in such a vulnerable state, Cole will never know how much it meant to him to bring comfort in a time of need. Though he has written him a note to try and express his gratitude.

In addition, Cole’s actions are inspiring the Yancey family to respond to times of crisis more like him.

“Whether it is an accident, or somebody is having a bad day, we are all human and we need each other, and you can be that person for somebody,” Timie said.

Hudson added that he hopes everyone who sees this story is encouraged to do the same, if ever in Cole’s shoes.

“Knowing what I went through… how scared I was… I would definitely be the Cole in that situation,” Hudson said. “Without Cole, I do not know what I would have done.”

from KARK https://ift.tt/qrh9w6z