Brave kids get-together
The Child Hero Awards have been an annual event for four years now. The idea is to distinguish children who have done something extraordinary, who have saved lives or helped someone in need. Daniela Lazarova attended this year's award ceremony and you can hear more about the little heroes and their astonishing feats in this week's Magazine.
Clown's performance Clowns are pretty busy at this time of year: a popular feature at end of school parties and special events. The kids standing around this particular clown look like any other group of carefree youngsters at the end of term. But these kids are special -they have all done something exceptionally brave and many of them have saved someone's life in a crisis, showing courage, decisiveness and common sense beyond their years. The youngest is just three years old, the oldest is 14. There are kids here who have saved their schoolmate from drowning, who have saved a stranger's life by giving first aid and even a kid who helped the police to catch a notorious thief. One small boy jumped into a lake to save a child after having had just three swimming lessons. At the "brave kids' get-together" last week, where this year's child heroes were awarded medals of bravery, he explained that this was a perfectly normal thing for him to do since he was training for Baywatch. Ivan Rozsypal who organizes the event every year says he has great admiration for these children:
"I am always impressed by the ability to react quickly, to react unselfishly in a society where selfishness seems to be the general standard. These young people behaved in such a manner and I greatly admire them for it."
Can you tell us some of the stories that have stayed in your mind -that moved you the most or that you consider to be the most impressive?
"Yes. Among those that stand out from this year's awards - is the story of a young boy -Filip, aged ten -who went riding with his mom. A storm hit and one of the horses bolted. His mom tried to stop it but she herself got into trouble. The horse fell over her, on top of her actually, injuring her very seriously. The boy was incredibly brave. He dragged his mother's unconscious body across a field to cover, managed to bring the horse under control and from that remote part of the countryside he managed to get to civilization and get help. Without that help it is likely that his mother would never have walked again - but thanks to her son she is healthy again and engaging in plenty of activities with him."
We saw a little girl here. How old is she and what's her story?
"Krystina will be about ten now. Her story also moved me because I have children and I know what kind of problems I have with my children and I admire these children for their bravery. The friend of this young girl fell into a waste tank. Without a second thought she rushed over and started pulling her out even though there was danger that she herself could topple in. It was a huge struggle but she got the child out and saved her life. She was eight at the time and the little girl was four. Without this quick and fearless action the child would almost certainly have drowned."
I believe that there was a little boy who saved his grandfather life is that right?
"Yes, that's right. Petr was spending the night over at his grandpas when his grandpa went into diabetic shock - he fell into a coma. The five year old realized he had to get help. He was brave enough to leave the security of the flat and go into the corridor which was pitch black since he was too small to reach the light switch or any door handles. But he wandered from door to door in the dark and because he couldn't reach the doorbells he pounded on the doors with his fists until he managed to wake someone who called an ambulance. He saved his grandpa's life."
The Child Hero Awards, which have a long tradition in Great Britain, were established in this country four years ago by the investment company EPIC, and are sponsored by three dozen magazines and radio stations as well as leading toy manufacturers. The guest of honour at this year's awards ceremony was the First Lady Livia Klausova. The awards programme was naturally tailored to the taste of the kids and the hall was packed with proud parents, grand parents and friends. Ivan Rozsypal says that over the past four years he established an extensive network of helpers in schools, police stations, fire brigades and local councils in order to be informed about possible candidates for the Child Hero awards.
"We try to give them an award which would be a real distinction - we make it quite formal so that they realize the importance, the significance of their action. There is entertainment and there are prizes for them to enjoy -for we are lucky enough to have toy producers as sponsors - but what I think is important is that they see that there is a big group of adults who are really interested in what they did. That helps them realize that they did something extraordinary. I think it is important to note and keep track of such acts and make them role models for their schoolmates."
You spend time with these children. Do they feel like they've done something special?
"Not initially. Of course they talk about this with their parents, with their teachers and usually it is the adults who make them aware of it. They talk to the regional media and through them we learn about what happened."
