Hero teens recognized at board meeting
Posted on 06/11/2019
Supt. Armstrong and four "hero" students(SPS) - The regular meeting of the Sapulpa Schools Board of Education was anything but regular on Monday night.

The June meeting was highlighted by the appearance of the four Sapulpa Chieftains students who rescued an elderly neighbor from her house that had caught on fire.

Shortly after the meeting was called to order, the packed room was introduced to Wyatt Hall, Nick Byrd, Seth Byrd, and Dylan Wick. The woman they pulled from the house, Catherine Ritchie, was also in attendance.

A video clip of the story that appeared Sunday evening on World News Tonight was shown for those who attended the meeting. ABC News is just one of several national news outlets that have shared the heroic tale.

Ms. Ritchie was preparing for bed, when she discovered her room had been overcome with flames. The smoke was so thick, Ms. Ritchie became disoriented and couldn’t find her way out. Meanwhile, the boys who were outside smelled smoke and heard an alarm. That was their cue as they raced into action to get Ms. Ritchie out. Nick was able to get into the house through a back door, found her in a hallway, and carried her out of the house.

A round of applause followed the video and Superintendent Rob Armstrong spoke about the boys and their selfless act. True to the way they’ve handled their newfound fame, according to a mother of one of the boys, each of them deflected the attention and thanked the community and Ms. Ritchie.

Each was given a personalized letter from State Superintendent of Public Instruction Joy Hofmeister before receiving a standing ovation and another hug from Ms. Ritchie.

Supt. Armstrong also recognized Kenyon Kahmeyer, another Chieftains football player, for his act of kindness in helping an elderly man at QuikTrip in May. You can scroll to the bottom of this page to read the caption that was posted with the photo from the Home Town Sapulpa Facebook page.

Nick Byrd

Seth Byrd

Dylan Wick

Wyatt Hall

Ms. Ritchie

Ms. Ritchie hugs Dylan Wick

Ms. Ritchie hugs Nick Byrd

Mr. Armstrong hands letters to the boys

Kenyon Kahmeyer helps man out of QT