Portraits of Eugene (Eddie) Coleman and Ronald Osborne.
Glenna Osborne
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Glenna Osborne
This story is a part of the My Unsung Hero collection, from the Hidden Mind group. It options tales of individuals whose kindness left an enduring impression on another person.
In 2022, Glenna Osborne’s father, Ronald Osborne, handed away. To organize for his memorial service, the household went by way of his belongings. Within the course of, they got here throughout a observe that Ronald had written about his expensive buddy, Eddie Coleman. The 2 males had been each firefighters and had battled blazes collectively for a few years.
The observe learn, “For firefighter and particular buddy Eddie, who saved my life. John 15:13, ‘Larger love has nobody than to put down one’s life for one’s buddy.'”
Ronald had advised his daughter and the remainder of the household that Coleman had saved his life, however had by no means gone into element. Curious to know extra about her deceased father’s historical past, Glenna reached out to Coleman and requested if he would inform her what had occurred.
Coleman advised her in regards to the day when he was 21 and her father was 19. They’d been referred to as to a home hearth.
“Once they arrived, they noticed a two-story house engulfed in flames. And Eddie and my father ended up on the roof combating this fireplace,” Glenna mentioned.
“My father went to take a step and he began to fall by way of the roof, and Eddie rapidly reached in, grabbed the collar of [my father’s] firefighter coat and someway pulled him as much as security — away from what my father had as soon as mentioned would have been a positive loss of life.”
Earlier than this occasion, the 2 males had been shut. However the second on the home hearth bonded them collectively. They had been mates till the day Ronald died.
Glenna is grateful that she realized Coleman’s full story. It gave her a brand new understanding of her father’s devotion to his buddy.
“I am so grateful that Eddie did this for my father and for my household… as a result of with out him, none of us can be right here. So, we’re simply indebted to him for his braveness and his fast considering within the line of obligation and the truth that he saved my father’s life.”
My Unsung Hero is also a podcast — new episodes are launched each Tuesday. To share the story of your unsung hero with the Hidden Mind group, document a voice memo in your cellphone and ship it to myunsunghero@hiddenbrain.org.
