Who Is Watching Your Back?

Would you be willing to give your life to save another person? This is the question Wesley Autrey asked himself as he watched a young New York stranger fall between the subway tracks in front of an approaching train.

Harlem native Wesley Autrey, a 50-year-old construction worker and Navy veteran was waiting for a subway with his two young daughters. Nearby, a man collapsed, his body convulsing due to a seizure. Autrey and two women rushed to help as the man appeared to regain his composure.  Cameron Hollopeter, 20, managed to get up, but then stumbled to the platform edge and fell to the tracks, between the two rails. The headlights of the No.1 train appeared. “I had to make a split decision,” Autrey said. So he made one, and leapt.

As the train approached, Mr. Autrey lay on Mr. Hollopeter, his heart pounding, pressing him down in a space roughly a foot deep. The train’s brakes screeched, but it could not stop in time. Five cars rolled overhead before the train stopped, the cars passing inches from his head, smudging his blue knit cap with grease. Mr. Autrey heard onlookers’ screams. “We’re O.K. down here,” he yelled, “but I’ve got two daughters up there. Let them know their father’s O.K.” He heard cries of wonder, and applause.

In the weeks following his heroic act, Autrey has been the focus of massive media attention.  Along with multiple television appearances, he was even recognized by President Bush during his State of the Union address last week. Autrey was surprised by the attention drawn to his unselfish act. In a very humble demeanor he told the press, “I don’t feel like I did something spectacular; I just saw someone who needed help. I don't think I did anything heroic. I just saved a life. I don't call myself a hero because the real heroes are overseas dying for you and me.”

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 reminds us that each of us is vulnerable to falling, “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!” Our fall may be a financial fall, a moral fall, a health fall or a marriage fall. Regardless of the fall, we need to have men around us who can help us get back on our feet.

Perhaps you don’t have someone out there watching your back. This is what Men’s Ministry is all about.  The teaching, food and fellowship are great, but the ultimate goal is building meaningful relationships with other men. These relationships are sometimes awkward and difficult for men, but in the end they can make all the difference.

Shoulder to Shoulder,

Gregg