For Shaela Warkentin, saying “thank you” to those who saved her just isn’t enough.
“Without the firefighters who saved me from the vehicle, where would I be?” Warkentin said. “It’s really important to me. Just them knowing how thankful I am for saving my life.”
Warkentin suffered life-threatening injuries in a March 2010 accident that required the Fresno Fire Department to extricate the then- 15-year-old from the vehicle. Warkentin is still recovering from injuries caused by the accident.
Warkentin will have another chance to say “thank you” to the firefighters who saved her, but this time in collaboration with the Fresno State men’s basketball team. Fresno State will host Heroes Night on Saturday to recognize the men and women who serve our country.
“The work and training that they put in their careers, this is the reward for that hard work,” said Ken Warkentin, Shaela’s father. “We’re incredibly grateful for the men and women in uniform.”
But for Fresno Fire Department Battalion Chief Charles “Chuck” Tobias, it’s a chance for the community to recognize the true hero in Warkentin and others like her.
“We appreciate the recognition of people calling us heroes,” Tobias said. “But the real heroes are the families like the Warkentins, whose children are overcoming obstacles everyday.”
Tobias recognizes them as the true heroes because of the adversity they are constantly challenged with. Tobias said law enforcement officers are heroes when duty calls, but Warkentin is a hero everyday.
“Every day I get up, I don’t have to overcome some of the things they do, so they’re the real heroes,” Tobias said.
Regardless, Fresno State Athletics and local law enforcement have come together in appreciation of all the Central Valley heroes.
“It’s an honor and a privilege for us to even be associated with their night and sharing their experience,” said head coach Rodney Terry.
Terry and his Bulldogs will host Utah State for Saturday’s game, with tip off set for 7 p.m.
Heroes Night will honor all Central Valley police officers, firefighters, paramedics, active military and veterans. Heroes will receive a discounted ticket price of only $5 for Saturday’s Western Athletic Conference matchup.
But one thing Heroes Night won’t do is permanently heal the wounds caused by the March 2010 accident, but rather forge a bond.
“It’s not closure,” Tobias said. “It’s actually the beginning. The beginning of something different, the beginning of a long-lasting friendship. A love.”
