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Wesley Autrey
Wesley Autrey (born February 6, 1956), dubbed by the media as the Subway Samaritan, Subway Superman, Hero of Harlem, and Subway Hero, is a New York City construction worker and Navy veteran. In 2007, he achieved international recognition when he saved Cameron Hollopeter, a film student who suffered a seizure and fell onto the tracks, from being struck by a New York City Subway train. He is on the 2007 edition of Time Magazine's "Time 100" Most Influential People in the World list, with a tribute written by Donald Trump.
On January 2, 2007, Autrey was waiting for a train at the 137th Street–City College station in Manhattan with his two young daughters. At around 12:45 p.m., he and two women noticed a young man, Cameron Hollopeter, having a seizure. Autrey borrowed a pen and used it to keep Hollopeter's jaw open. Following the seizure, Hollopeter stumbled from the platform, falling onto the tracks.
As Hollopeter lay on the tracks, Autrey saw the lights of an oncoming 1 train. As one of the women held Autrey's daughters away from the edge of the platform, he dove onto the tracks. He thought he would be able to take Hollopeter off the tracks, but he realized there was not enough time to drag Hollopeter away. Instead, he protected Hollopeter by throwing himself over Hollopeter's body in a drainage trench between the tracks, where he held him down. Though the operator of the train applied the brakes, all but two cars passed over them, close enough to leave grease on Autrey's cap.
Autrey told The New York Times "I don't feel like I did something spectacular; I just saw someone who needed help. I did what I felt was right." Wesley is a member of the LIUNA union, Local 79, and credits his training with helping him make the split-second decision: "Since I do construction work with Local 79, we work in confined spaces a lot. So I looked, and my judgment was pretty right. The train did have enough room for me."
Autrey went to Hollopeter's hospital room and met his family. Hollopeter's father Larry said:
Mr. Autrey's instinctive and unselfish act saved our son's life. There are no words to properly express our gratitude and feelings for his actions.... May God's blessings be with Mr. Autrey and his family.
By the end of the next day, Autrey received a flood of gifts and phone calls of praise from complete strangers. He received $5,000 cash and $5,000 in scholarships for his daughters from Jerry Sherlock, the president of the New York Film Academy where Hollopeter attends school. Autrey also received $10,000 from Donald Trump. He was interviewed for several national morning news programs and was invited to be a television guest by David Letterman, Charlie Rose and Ellen DeGeneres, among others. Autrey, who had been wearing a periwinkle blue beanie with a Playboy Bunny logo, received a lifetime subscription to Playboy, a new beanie, and additional Playboy merchandise. He also earned the title "Hero of Harlem", and received a trip to Walt Disney World Resort. On the January 9, 2007 airing of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, he was presented with a $5,000 Gap gift card, tickets and backstage passes to the next Beyoncé concert in New York, season tickets to the New Jersey Nets, a signed jersey from Jason Kidd, a brand new Jeep Patriot, two years' of car insurance from Progressive, and a one-year free parking pass for use anywhere in NYC. His daughters were given new computers that will be updated every three years until they graduate from high school.
Autrey, a construction worker, was working on converting classrooms into a library at PS 380, John Wayne Elementary School, in Brooklyn. The New York Daily News' Michael Daly said that the school should be renamed after Autrey instead.
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Wesley Autrey
Wesley Autrey (born February 6, 1956), dubbed by the media as the Subway Samaritan, Subway Superman, Hero of Harlem, and Subway Hero, is a New York City construction worker and Navy veteran. In 2007, he achieved international recognition when he saved Cameron Hollopeter, a film student who suffered a seizure and fell onto the tracks, from being struck by a New York City Subway train. He is on the 2007 edition of Time Magazine's "Time 100" Most Influential People in the World list, with a tribute written by Donald Trump.
On January 2, 2007, Autrey was waiting for a train at the 137th Street–City College station in Manhattan with his two young daughters. At around 12:45 p.m., he and two women noticed a young man, Cameron Hollopeter, having a seizure. Autrey borrowed a pen and used it to keep Hollopeter's jaw open. Following the seizure, Hollopeter stumbled from the platform, falling onto the tracks.
As Hollopeter lay on the tracks, Autrey saw the lights of an oncoming 1 train. As one of the women held Autrey's daughters away from the edge of the platform, he dove onto the tracks. He thought he would be able to take Hollopeter off the tracks, but he realized there was not enough time to drag Hollopeter away. Instead, he protected Hollopeter by throwing himself over Hollopeter's body in a drainage trench between the tracks, where he held him down. Though the operator of the train applied the brakes, all but two cars passed over them, close enough to leave grease on Autrey's cap.
Autrey told The New York Times "I don't feel like I did something spectacular; I just saw someone who needed help. I did what I felt was right." Wesley is a member of the LIUNA union, Local 79, and credits his training with helping him make the split-second decision: "Since I do construction work with Local 79, we work in confined spaces a lot. So I looked, and my judgment was pretty right. The train did have enough room for me."
Autrey went to Hollopeter's hospital room and met his family. Hollopeter's father Larry said:
Mr. Autrey's instinctive and unselfish act saved our son's life. There are no words to properly express our gratitude and feelings for his actions.... May God's blessings be with Mr. Autrey and his family.
By the end of the next day, Autrey received a flood of gifts and phone calls of praise from complete strangers. He received $5,000 cash and $5,000 in scholarships for his daughters from Jerry Sherlock, the president of the New York Film Academy where Hollopeter attends school. Autrey also received $10,000 from Donald Trump. He was interviewed for several national morning news programs and was invited to be a television guest by David Letterman, Charlie Rose and Ellen DeGeneres, among others. Autrey, who had been wearing a periwinkle blue beanie with a Playboy Bunny logo, received a lifetime subscription to Playboy, a new beanie, and additional Playboy merchandise. He also earned the title "Hero of Harlem", and received a trip to Walt Disney World Resort. On the January 9, 2007 airing of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, he was presented with a $5,000 Gap gift card, tickets and backstage passes to the next Beyoncé concert in New York, season tickets to the New Jersey Nets, a signed jersey from Jason Kidd, a brand new Jeep Patriot, two years' of car insurance from Progressive, and a one-year free parking pass for use anywhere in NYC. His daughters were given new computers that will be updated every three years until they graduate from high school.
Autrey, a construction worker, was working on converting classrooms into a library at PS 380, John Wayne Elementary School, in Brooklyn. The New York Daily News' Michael Daly said that the school should be renamed after Autrey instead.
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