Carnegie Hero Fund President Eric Zahren presented the Carnegie Medal to the family of Roland V. Hueston III at a presentation held on Saturday, Oct. 4, in New York City.
Hueston was awarded the medal in June after he died attempting to save a man from being struck by a train in New York on Jan. 1, 2022.
At 2:40 a.m. a 38-year-old man was assaulted by several teenagers and laid on a subway track with a broken arm as an oncoming train was moving through a tunnel into Fordham Road station. In the vicinity was 36-year-old Roland V. Hueston III. Hueston told the assailants to get away from the man, and then moved from the platform onto the track. As he attempted to aid the man, the eight-car train arrived in the station.
A train operator saw Hueston waving his arms on the track and applied the emergency brake to slow the train. The train continued to advance toward Hueston, who unsuccessfully tried to climb back onto the platform, and he was struck. The train stopped just short of striking the injured man, with only five train cars being fully in the station by the time it came to a full stop. The man suffered injuries to his face and torso. He was treated at a hospital. Hueston was pronounced dead at the scene.
Speaking to Hueston’s family, Zahren honored his sacrifice and the significance his bravery would inspire.
“Roland’s extraordinary heroism and selflessness will forever live, not only in our own hearts, but in the hearts of future generations yet unborn,” Zahren said. “Heroism in action in a moment surpasses the power of a lifetime. It is the most, and best that can be done in a lifetime, whether long or too short.”
Hueston’s mother, Millicent Hueston, accepted the medal alongside his father, Roland Hueston Jr., and their daughter Kristara Hueston.