A teenager in Missouri is being praised for helping a disabled man in a wheelchair get to safety as a storm was bearing down on St. Louis, even as passers-by did nothing but honk and wave.
On Tuesday, much of the Midwest, and Missouri, in particular, was bedeviled by strong storms that spawned torrential rain, heavy winds, and even deadly tornadoes. And as the storm system bore down on St. Louis, as the city’s KMOV-TV reports, Gregory Beck was about to get stuck outside in the worst of it.
Beck lost both of his legs to disease in recent years, and he’s legally blind, so he can’t drive. Instead, he gets around as best he can in a manual wheelchair, a task made even more difficult by the hilly terrain of some of St. Louis’ suburbs. In fact, Beck estimates that it takes him 25 minutes, including multiple stops for rest, just to get up the small hill to his home.
On Tuesday, Beck found himself outside as a severe storm system was closing in on the city and its suburbs. As black storm clouds closed in from the west, Beck, who was on his way home from a grocery store, tried valiantly to get to safety. Unfortunately, drivers on the busy street he was traversing were less interested in helping him get to safety, preferring instead to honk and wave at the disabled man as they drove past.
And then the tornado sirens started going off.
Jefferson City tornado. pic.twitter.com/bLC4OSYX9X
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Beck was able to make it to the relative safety of a nearby gas station but was still far enough away from home that he would never make it before the storm hit.
Fortunately, a good Samaritan came by, in the form of a 16-year-old boy.
Seth Phillips, 16, didn’t waste any time. As soon as his mom stopped the car, the teen jumped out and pushed Beck up the hill, running, to his home.
Seth’s mom, Amber Gilleylen, recorded the entire thing and shared it with the St. Louis CBS affiliate. You can watch the video below.
Seth, for his part, says he was only doing what basic human kindness dictates.
“We need to be caring for each other and helping each other out.”
Meanwhile, Beck had nothing but praise for the teenager and his mom, saying, “just the greatest people and very concerned about other people, which America needs to start doing more of.”
Seth’s mom, meanwhile, has started a GoFundMe page to raise $1,500 to purchase an electric wheelchair for Beck.