Construction worker who saved man gets award for being civil

<p>Construction worker Wesley Autrey, who was called a hero for saving the life of a teen who fell onto the subway tracks in New York City, now has a new distinction _ this one for "conspicuously civilized behavior."</p><p>Autrey, who last month jumped onto the subway tracks to save 19-year-old Cameron Hollopeter from an oncoming train, is among the winners of the 2006 Civies, an award given by the two-person watchdog group Americans for More Civility.</p><p>Another special award went to the Amish of Nickel Township for comforting the family of the man who killed Pennsylvania school children in their midst. The award noted simply, "grace exists."</p><p>Former Abilene Reporter-News Editor Glenn Dromgoole and writer Alan Gibson, of Jasper, Ga., announced their ninth annual Civies Awards on Thursday. Also among those honored were U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman, California Gov. Arnold Scharzenegger and actor Clint Eastwood.</p><p>New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg called Autrey a hero when he gave him the Bronze Medallion, the city's highest award for civic achievement. Autrey also was showered with a trip to Disney World, $10,000 from Donald Trump and recognition during President Bush's State of the Union address.</p><p>But Gibson noted that Autrey had said, "It ain't about being a hero."</p><p>When Autrey saw Hollopeter, a film student, suffer a seizure and fall onto the tracks while waiting for a train, Autrey jumped down to him, pulled Hollopeter into a rut between the rails and got on top of him as the train passed overhead with about two inches to spare.</p><p>If he's not a hero, "Maybe it's about being one utterly remarkable citizen," Gibson wrote.</p><p>The award noted that Lieberman has been called liberal, conservative, independent. "He's still Joe Lieberman. No label can capture a man who thinks for himself."</p><p>Scharzenegger was honored for trying to get Democrats and Republicans to work together for solutions and Eastwood was honored for his movie showing Iwo Jima from a Japanese perspective.</p><p>Bob Schieffer of CBS News was honored because his "reassuring demeanor proved that news need neither be pumped nor anchored, just reported."</p><p>Civility also was noted in the Missouri U.S. Senate race between Republican Jim Talent and Democrat Claire McCaskill, the winner. The campaign was honored for being rancor-free, a tribute to both candidates.</p><p>Also honored was tennis pro Kim Clijsters who smiles, signs autographs, doesn't pout and wins anyway; Lois Hatton, a columnist from South Dakota who reached across the racial divide to salute whites who have embraced black history and progress and Stephen Miller, an author-essayist who refused to let face-to-face conversation become a declining art.</p>

http://accesswdun.com/article/2007/2/106543