An elderly couple lives to see another day because Cash Rinker (25), Jeremiah Duhring (25) of Greeley West High School, and Preston Natividad (25) of Frontier Academy High School were hanging out in Greeley when they happened to be at the right place at exactly the right time.

On Saturday, Feb. 29, a fire in an elderly couple’s RV broke out and was rapidly spreading toward their house. The boys had smelled the smoke but did not think much of it, thinking it was coming from their car. After a few minutes, the boys discovered that the smoke they smelled was coming from a house on the block. Rinker said, “Nothing really came to mind in the moment when we first saw it, but we knew to call 911 and make sure everyone got out of the house safely.” They were devoted to getting the man and woman out of the house in proper condition no matter what it took.

After Rinker called the police for help, the boys pounded on the door to wake up the couple; Rinker went to the neighboring houses to inform them of the fire next door.  The fire department arrived soon after and told the three boys how brave and helpful they were at the scene. It took the fire department a bit of time to get the fire out completely. If the boys wouldn’t have been there to help, the fire department would have gotten there too late to save the elderly couple.

The three friends were fearless in this situation as they only had one goal in mind. “I was not scared in the moment, but it was kind of scary after the fact when my adrenaline wasn’t as high anymore and it had set in what had really happened,” said Rinker. Although they are just a few kids from small towns, their bravery saved this couple’s lives.

Rinker, Duhring, and Natividad continue to get praised for their heroic acts. They were told that the firefighters planned on presenting them with an award to honor them for being courageous and extraordinary. Acts like these do not go unnoticed and these friends should be extremely proud of what they did.

Chloe Stevens (24) said, “When I first heard about it, I thought about how scary it must have been and how brave they were for doing it.” Rinker is seen as a hero by many people and has proved what it means to be an Eaton Red.