Alliance of Southwest Missouri went to Kelsey Norman Elementary school in October of last year to help pass out free bike helmets to the students. This is one of the many child safety initiatives the company does for the students in Joplin, Missouri, but this time, it would make a bigger difference than they would ever know.
One of the kids who got one of those free helmets was Augie Ward. On May 22, he and his mother were at home when the sirens went off for the tornado. His mother, Natalie Gonzalez told her son to hurry up and put on his helmet.
“I told [my son] to put a bicycle helmet on at the last minute because I’d heard on the news if you were worried about falling debris in an earthquake, to put a bicycle helmet on your child," Gonzalez said.
“I saw the tornado warning, I heard the sirens, I looked outside and I saw the dark cloud, and we made the split-second decision to take a blanket, take a pillow and our little puppy [and all get in the bathtub with our mattress over us]," Gonzalez said during an ABC news broadcast. “And at one point the toilet flew up out of the ground and hit my son in the head and hit me in the back, and the bicycle helmet saved his life.”
That's right....their toilet was ripped from the floor of their home and thrown through the air, striking Augie in the skull. However, the helmet he was wearing, the free one he got from Alliance, not only prevented massive damage to the skull or brain, but most likely saved his life.
This is a great way to show people the many uses for a bike helmet. Just think...if a helmet helps a child survive a large, heavy object being flung by 200+mph winds, just think of how it could help someone's skull during a bike crash on a side street.
Last week, Kevin Theilen, the Safe Kids Coordinator for Alliance, came back to Kelsey Norman Elementary, and Augie was given a brand new helmet since his original one was damaged.
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