Three local teens honored for helping save man’s life Dec. 29

Heidi’s Helping Angels presented letters of commendation this morning to three local teenagers who acted swiftly to save a man’s life on December 29.

Christopher Lull, 19, of Riverhead, Isabella DiPierro, 16, of Wading River and Tyrek Highsmith, 18, of Riverhead were walking near the Peconic River Dec. 29 when they heard muffled cries coming from beneath the dock. There, they found an exhausted man struggling to cling to the dock’s piling in the frigid waters of the river. After trying to rescue the man themselves, the three called the Riverhead Police, who responded with five officers to pull the man to safety.

“They saved his life,” Riverhead Police Lt. David Lessard said of the man, whose fingers and toes had turned black from the cold by the time he was extracted.

The teenagers were awarded with letters of commendation from Heidi’s Helping Angels today in the Peconic riverfront parking lot.

“These three young people chose to make a difference that night,” said the Angels’ incoming president Chuck Thomas at the ceremony today. “It’s only fitting that it happened on Heidi Behr Way.”

Heidi’s Helping Angels is named for a Riverhead volunteer EMT who died in the line of duty in May 2005. Heidi Behr, a 23-year-old volunteer from Riverhead and Bill Stone, a 30-year-old paid responder from Ridge were killed when the ambulance they were riding in crashed on Main Road in Aquebogue in May 2005.

Heidi’s Helping Angels was formed in Heidi’s memory and awards scholarships to graduating high school seniors who demonstrate a commitment to community service. In 2013, a memorial roadway was dedicated to Behr along the Peconic River.

“These young people represent the ideals of our organization,” said Parkin. “They made a decision to do something, to act on their impulse to help when someone’s life was in danger.”

The three teens were presented with the letters of commendation in front of the sign that memorializes the Peconic riverfront drive in Behr’s name. Behr’s parents, June and John Behr, were in attendance. Also present at the ceremony were Riverhead Police officers Chris Burns and Anthony Montalbnao, two of the cops who responded to the call that saved the man’s life.

RiverheadLOCAL photos by Katie Blasl.

Correction: A previously version of this article misidentified the incoming president of Heidi’s Helping Angels. RiverheadLOCAL regrets the error.