Young Boy Credits 'Angels' for Helping Him Save Dad's Life
On March 2, the American Red Cross honored 11 winners of the 2017 East Idaho Real Heroes awards. The youngest awardee was 8-year-old J.T. Parker who saved his father's life by lifting a car that was pinned on his body using a heavy jack. The boy believes he received divine help from the potentially fatal accident.
The experience happened on July 30 last year while Stephen Parker was working on his Toyota Prius along with his sons J.T. and 17-year-old Mason at the backyard of their Sugar City home.
"We were pulling the engine out of the car, and after we got it jacked up, I climbed under there to take the axles off," he recalled. "The one axle came off pretty easily, but the other side wasn't coming off."
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While adjusting the axle, the car fell on his body. Mason had gone into the house earlier with a cut hand and the only person left was J.T.
"I yelled to J.T. on the other side of the car, 'Jack it up quick! Jack it up quick!'" Stephen said. But at the back of his mind, he knew his little boy wouldn't be able to do so as it took both him and his teenage son to jack up the car earlier.
The 50-pound J.T. quickly jumped on the jack handle and slowly raised the 6,000-pound car off his father's body. After the car was off, he ran into the house to get his brother and call 911. Stephen was airlifted to Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center where he was diagnosed with 13 broken ribs but no internal injury.
He was home after two days, according to East Idaho News. A week later, he and his wife asked their boy to jack up the car again on video, but the boy wasn't able to do it.
Asked how he was he able to lift the car, J.T. replied with just one word: "Angels." For his father, "It was just a miracle."
