EMT A.J. Sousa gets a hug from Marc Provencher during the New Hampshire Hero Awards at the State House in Concord on May 24. Sousa and Linwood Ambulance Service colleague Christine Shaw, at right, were off duty when they came upon the motorcycle accident last summer that cost Provencher his left arm.
From left are Brendan McQuaid, president and publisher of NH Union Leader, Jose Pichardo from Nashua and Joe Carelli, president Citizens-NH and VT during the NH Union Leader Heroes Awards held at the State House in Concord on Wednesday.
From left are Brendan McQuaid, president and publisher of NH Union Leader, Marc Provencher, with the EMTs who saved his life, Christine Shaw and A.J. Sousa, and Joe Carelli, president Citizens-NH and VT during the NH Union Leader Heroes Awards held at the State House in Concord on Wednesday.
From left are Brendan McQuaid, president and publisher of the Union Leader, Dover police detective Molly Martuscello, and Joe Carelli, president of Citizens New Hampshire and Vermont during the New Hampshire Hero Awards celebration Wednesday. Martuscello and colleague Sgt. Juel Cooper were honored for saving a despondent teenager in Dover.
New Hampshire Heroes Ben and Jose Carrasquillo hold their plaques, flanked by the Union Leader’s Brendan McQuaid and, at far right, Citizens’ Joe Carelli. Beside Carelli is Steve Lafontaine of Manchester, the motorcyclist whom the Carrasquillos helped rescue after he had a heart attack and crashed in Derry. Two other passersby, health practitioners Tiffany White of Bedford and Michelle Cleary of Derry, performed CPR until help arrived. They also received Hero Awards .
EMT A.J. Sousa gets a hug from Marc Provencher during the New Hampshire Hero Awards at the State House in Concord on May 24. Sousa and Linwood Ambulance Service colleague Christine Shaw, at right, were off duty when they came upon the motorcycle accident last summer that cost Provencher his left arm.
EMT A.J. Sousa gets a hug from Marc Provencher during the New Hampshire Hero Awards at the State House in Concord on May 24. Sousa and Linwood Ambulance Service colleague Christine Shaw, at right, were off duty when they came upon the motorcycle accident last summer that cost Provencher his left arm.
EMT A.J. Sousa gets a hug from Marc Provencher during the New Hampshire Hero Awards at the State House in Concord on May 24. Sousa and Linwood Ambulance Service colleague Christine Shaw, at right, were off duty when they came upon the motorcycle accident last summer that cost Provencher his left arm.
From left are Brendan McQuaid, president and publisher of NH Union Leader, Jose Pichardo from Nashua and Joe Carelli, president Citizens-NH and VT during the NH Union Leader Heroes Awards held at the State House in Concord on Wednesday.
From left are Brendan McQuaid, president and publisher of the Union Leader, Dover police detective Molly Martuscello, and Joe Carelli, president of Citizens New Hampshire and Vermont during the New Hampshire Hero Awards celebration Wednesday. Martuscello and colleague Sgt. Juel Cooper were honored for saving a despondent teenager in Dover.
New Hampshire Heroes Ben and Jose Carrasquillo hold their plaques, flanked by the Union Leader’s Brendan McQuaid and, at far right, Citizens’ Joe Carelli. Beside Carelli is Steve Lafontaine of Manchester, the motorcyclist whom the Carrasquillos helped rescue after he had a heart attack and crashed in Derry. Two other passersby, health practitioners Tiffany White of Bedford and Michelle Cleary of Derry, performed CPR until help arrived. They also received Hero Awards .
Marc Provencher was in mid-conversation Wednesday when he saw the angel who saved his life last summer.
Wearing a smile big enough to chase away the dark clouds overhead and holding back a few tears, Provencher embraced his hero, Christine Shaw, in a powerful and emotional hug.
“I’ve been waiting for that,” Provencher said. “Without her, I wouldn’t be here.”
Shaw was among 15 people honored with New Hampshire Hero Awards during an afternoon ceremony Wednesday outside the State House. The program is sponsored by Citizens and presented by the New Hampshire Union Leader.
The awards honor New Hampshire residents who have risked their lives to save or attempt to save the life of another person.
Provencher was riding his wife’s Harley-Davidson motorcycle north on Interstate 93, heading to their home in Pittsburg last July when something happened to the bike, pulling it left into the guardrail and scraping Provencher against the metal.
Provencher, seeing blood spurting from his shattered left arm, thought he was going to die. That’s when Shaw, an advanced EMT with Linwood Ambulance Service, appeared next to him and applied a tourniquet to stop the bleeding while fellow EMT A.J. Sousa worked to stabilize him.
Both happened to be passing by on the highway when they came upon the accident scene. Both Sousa and Shaw received New Hampshire Hero Awards for their actions.
As Shaw received her award, Provencher made his way to the front of the crowd to present her with a bouquet of flowers.
“These two saved my life,” Provencher said. “It’s great to see them again. I wasn’t ready to go. This event is awesome. They deserve this.”
Shaw said “it’s way better” to see Provencher “like this.”
“He’s standing — I like seeing him in the vertical, instead of horizontal,” Shaw said.
Sousa said he liked the fact the Hero Awards offered so many like him a chance to feel a sense of closure.
“To see someone that was on the brink of death, hanging on for dear life, and a year later he’s thriving and smiling,” Sousa said. “It’s really awesome to see that.”
From left are Brendan McQuaid, president and publisher of NH Union Leader, Marc Provencher, with the EMTs who saved his life, Christine Shaw and A.J. Sousa, and Joe Carelli, president Citizens-NH and VT during the NH Union Leader Heroes Awards held at the State House in Concord on Wednesday.
Thomas Roy/Union Leader
Union Leader President and Publisher Brendan McQuaid told the stories of each life-saving event before calling on recipients to receive their plaques.
“To be recognized here today, an individual must risk their life to save the life or attempt to save the life of another,” McQuaid said. “We are excited to present this year’s heroes today, and honor them as they should be for their heroic efforts.”
Joe Carelli, president of Citizens in New Hampshire and Vermont, said his bank has been a sponsor of the awards since 2008.
“I personally look forward to this day every year,” Carelli said. “It’s an opportunity for us and our friends at the Union Leader to shine a spotlight on individuals who, in that one particular moment they came across someone in need, put themselves, their families and their futures aside to be able to take care of that individual. Those selfless acts should not go unrecognized.”
Last May, Portsmouth Detective Rochelle Jones responded to a report of a despondent man threatening to jump from the Piscataqua River Bridge. Her actions at the scene saved his life.
She was grateful she didn’t have to make a speech as she accepted the award. But she spoke afterward about what the day meant to her.
“People use the word hero a lot,” Jones said. “I think it’s good that we’re acknowledged because I think it can inspire others to do the same. Just to be sitting here and hear the other stories too, it’s inspiring.”
Shaw had some wisdom for people reading the stories of those honored at this year’s ceremony.
“I tell people you don’t even know the amazing things you can do.”
The NH Heroes
The 15 honorees at Wednesday’s event were:
Portsmouth Police Detective Rochelle Jones
Christine Shaw, North Woodstock
A.J. Sousa, North Woodstock
Hampton Police Officer Haley Magee
Dover Police Sgt. Juel Cooper
Dover Det. Molly Martuscello
Tiffany White, Bedford
Michelle Cleary, Derry
Jose Carrasquillo
Ben Carrasquillo
New Hampshire Air National Guard Lt. Col. Tori Scearbo, R.N.
Jeff Neil, Exeter
Jay Pichardo, Nashua
Tom Kehoe, Nashua
Corrections Officer Sgt. Jeffrey Kelley
For more on the winners, as well as more photos from the ceremony, go to unionleader.com.
