Just before Christmas 2017, a woman came into the school and gave Officer Kristen Lewis an ornament for her tree. On the ornament were these words: “Thank you Kristen. Police are like Guardian Angels who protect us and keep us safe!”

Below the writing was a date — April 9, 2013.

That night, Officer Lewis was working a regular third shift patrol one evening when received a common call.

She was about to merge onto I-469 when she received a 911 hang-up. A 911 hang up is a 911 call disconnected before an interview with the dispatcher can take place.  These are common and usually do not end up amounting to anything.

A few seconds later another call came through from a truck driver who reported that he had just hit a car.

Apparently, the car had recently hit a deer and stopped in the middle of the road. The truck driver didn’t know much except for the fact that he had definitely made solid contact with the car.

Fortunately Officer Lewis was only about a mile and a half away from the accident site and was able to respond quickly.

When she arrived, from what she could observe, the car was smashed up against the cement barrier. A body was lying almost forty feet away from the vehicle against the barrier as well. Lewis quickly radioed for paramedics and approached an injured women.

“Some of her face was missing,” Officer Lewis said. 

As she approached the women, Officer Lewis noticed two car seats that had flown out of the car, but luckily the driver’s children were not with her when the accident took place. The driver had no idea what had happened, but had obviously received some serious head trauma. Officer Lewis’s job was to keep her alert and try to keep her conscious. The worst thing for someone who has sustained head trauma is for them to lose consciousness.

“Her skull had been peeled back,” she said.

It was unbelievable, but the lady was actually able to communicate with Officer Lewis. Then, a paramedic, a friend of Kristen’s, arrived at the scene. The victim was put into the ambulance and driven to the hospital.

The next day Officer Lewis went to the hospital to see the women. She was unconscious, but recovering. Several weeks later, the women contacted Officer Lewis via Facebook to thank her for saving her life. The lady didn’t think that she would have made it if Officer Lewis hadn’t responded and kept her alert.

Just before Christmas break this last year, the women tracked Officer Lewis down at the high school and came in to see her. That day, the women gave Officer Lewis this personalized Christmas ornament.  

They still keep in touch to this day.

Officer Lewis said she was just doing her job. Sometimes that job is being someone’s Guardian Angel.