Halifax, Nova Scotia, Councillor Cathy Deagle Gammon presented the Carnegie Medal to Trisha Munroe and her son Alex Munroe at a Nov. 18 presentation held at the Halifax City Hall.
Eighteen months earlier, Munroe and Alex saved 8-year-old Will Munroe – Munroe’s son and Alex’s brother – from an attacking dog near their home in Windsor Junction, Nova Scotia.
In the afternoon, Will was outside playing with his 10-year-old brother in the snow at a cul-de-sac near their house when an adult male German shepherd approached them. The dog ultimately bit Will’s arm and thrashed him back and forth on the ground when the brother sought help. He alerted their mother Trisha Munroe, 42, who left the house barefoot and in pajamas. Will was on the ground when she arrived and the dog had one of his arms in its mouth.
“The dog was thrashing him around; it had his arms in his jaw. It was very violent,” Trisha told The Chronicle Herald.
Munroe sat on the dog and put her hands in its mouth in an attempt to release its hold on him. Also responding to the scene from the house was Will’s eldest brother, 13-year-old Alex. He saw his mother struggling to control the dog and entered the street where he punched the dog on the head.
“I just started punching it in the head, trying to get it off my brother and my mom,” Alex said.
The strike caused the dog to release Will and allowed him to move to safety in his driveway. The dog then bit Munroe’s right arm below the elbow as she remained seated on its back. Alex continued to punch the dog’s head, switching from a closed fist to a hammer fist, until it let go of Munroe’s right arm and then bit her left arm. Alex again punched the dog and it released Munroe’s other arm. An owner of the dog then arrived and led the dog back home. Will was taken to the hospital by ambulance after he suffered injuries to his head and arm. He was treated for punctures to both arms. Munroe was also treated for the bites to her arms and right hand. Alex recovered from a sore hand in a few days.
Munroe gave a humble response in her reaction to receiving the medal and said she just did what a mother would do.
“I’m a mother, you’re going to do whatever you can to save your child … and I couldn’t even save him. Like, I needed my 13-year-old to save him.”
She praised her son and the actions he took during the situation.
“He just remained calm and totally took control of the situation. So, for that, I’m forever grateful.”
Alex thought it was “pretty cool” after he received the medal and saved his family.
Pictured, from left, are Deagle Gammon, Alex, Munroe, and Mayor Andy Fillmore.