Stephen L. Wilson, 21, of Mexico, Ind., shouldn’t have been near the intersection of Ind. 14 and County Farm Road around 4:30 p.m. July 13.
The former Marine currently works construction. Right now he’s working on at project at Wawasee High School.
“We got off early that day,” said Wilson.
And because a co-worker that he carpools with had a meeting, Wilson was traveling along Ind. 14 when two women were badly injured when the motorcycle they were on was struck by another vehicle.
About a mile down the road was Wilson. As he arrived to the scene, his training as a Marine came to him.
He assessed the situation and saw one of the women, Terri A. Penrod, 54, Silver Lake, was bleeding much more severely than Sue Raber, 53, Silver Lake.
Penrod’s leg was severed.
“If he hadn’t done what he had done, (Penrod) probably would have died by the time paramedics got there,” said Kosciusko County Sheriff Rocky Goshert.
Wilson didn’t hesitate. He asked for the belts of two witnesses and had another witness grab a corn stalk from a nearby field.
With that Wilson made an impromptu tourniquet to stop Penrod’s bleeding.
“I wasn’t trying to do anything special, I was just trying to help out,” said Wilson.
Wilson, who spent 1.5 years in the Marines before being discharged with an injury, said his main focus was to keep Penrod calm.
“I just wanted to make sure that the bleeding stopped,” said Wilson. “I made sure she looked at me so she wouldn’t (see her leg). I kept talking to her, held her hand and tried to keep her calm. Especially after the adrenaline wore off, it was important to keep her from going into shock.”
Wilson was honored this morning by the Kosciusko County Commissioners with a certificate of appreciation from the county sheriff’s department.
Commissioners Bob Conley, Brad Jackson and Ron Truex each took turns lauding Wilson’s efforts.
“That’s a truly heroic effort,” said Conley.
Wilson said being a hero never crossed his mind. He just wanted to help.
Wilson hasn’t talked to Penrod or Raber since the accident, but said he’s heard they are both recovering.
“A lot of people wouldn’t have done what he did,” said Goshert. “They would have been worried about a lawsuit. He just stepped right in there and let his training take over.”
