Editor, The Times:
It is the quiet heroes who really make the difference. News has reached me this day of the passing of a quiet hero in our valley.
We have all grown up seeing flamboyant and imaginary heroes on TV or in movies who set out to the save the world. However the real heroes seldom get the recognition they truly deserve.
Garry Ruston is one the people I call a Quiet Hero. He lived his life as many of us do: day to day, filled with work and family and friends.
I do not really know the Garry who worked at the mill. I know little of Garry's family life or who all his friends are. I know the Garry that so few really know. He is the one who sets all he is doing aside, no matter the time of day or night, no matter how bad the weather and he answers the call for help.
As a First Responder for so many years I know the Garry who brought the Highway Rescue truck to the misfortune of others. Many times as I have held someone's life in my hands, hoping and asking, I listen for the distant siren of the rescue truck. Knowing within it are the tools and the people with the skill to dismantle the vehicle that has my patient trapped. Knowing there is little that can be done to treat the patient until they are freed from the wreckage.
Along with the tools and the skill, Garry carried with him a strong determination to render aid to others. He is a volunteer in our valley who will be deeply missed. There is no way to measure how many lives he has affected. Think of the Quiet Heroes in our world, those who walk among us each and everyday.
Kevin Deckert
Rescue Responder
Avola, B.C.