Photo: YouTube
What a hero!
By Olivia Jakiel — Written on Feb 19, 2021
Thanks to the swift thinking of a local Wisconsin snowplow driver, this terrifying story has a happy ending.
The community of West Bend, Wisconsin is calling David Gehrke a hero after he saved a 5-year-old little boy from wandering the streets in freezing temperatures in the middle of the night.
Gehrke was plowing snow around 4 a.m. when something on the side of the road caught his eye.
“It was snowing, blowing and miserable. I realized that it was not a dog or a deer,” Gehrke said.
“That was a small little boy dressed in a pair of just a zip-up, onesie pajamas. But that light on the side of my truck illuminated him. 4 a.m., and it’s like, ‘What is he doing out here?’”
The boy, who was identified as Maddox Pierce, reportedly wasn’t wearing shoes, a hat, gloves, a coat — anything that could protect him from the harsh and extreme winters of Wisconsin.
Gehrke knew he couldn’t just leave the little boy in the streets alone, so he did what any outstanding citizen would do in his situation — he turned his plow around and took action.
“I immediately took my jacket off, wrapped it around him and put him in the truck,” he recalled. “I called police dispatch. I got the heat blasting in the truck. I’ll keep him warm until we get help on the way.”
Thanks to Gehrke’s quick thinking and heroic actions, Maddox was able to be taken back to his house by police officers who met the pair in the cold, early morning hours.
According to Maddox himself, he was scared because he thought he was home alone, and started making his way to his grandfather’s house. His 14-year-old aunt was reportedly babysitting him at the time while his mom, Brittany Weissenberger, was at work.
Weissenberger couldn’t stop thanking Gehrke for saving her little boy’s life.
“I’ve been a mess since everything happened. He’s never, ever done anything like that before. I’m so thankful,” she said. “What are the odds that he would find him at that exact moment that he pretty much came outside?”
Social media users praised Gehrke for his actions, with one YouTube user commenting, “What a [sic] an absolutely wonderful and caring public servant! These plow drivers and other city workers are the unseen and unsung heros. Glad the little guy got home safe!”
Another wrote, “Thank God for this man. Sweet little boy. Thank God he was saved.”
According to local news reports, Gehrke was given a “certificate of appreciation” for finding and saving the boy, and police have not pressed any charges against anyone involved in the ordeal.
Olivia Jakiel is an editor and writer who covers celebrity and entertainment news. Follow her on Instagram and keep up with her zingers on Twitter.