Have you heard about a Columbus East High School senior who saved the life of an 83-year-old woman at Harrison Lake last month?
Well, believe it. But you can also believe the story did not get spread around by the heroic 12th grader. In fact, 17-year-old Conner Axsom has preferred to avoid talking about the life-saving actions he took in the late afternoon hours of Sept. 24.
It was only at the insistence of one of his scout leaders that Conner agreed to write an account that could be sent to the Boy Scouts of America’s national headquarters in Irving, Texas.
“He has really grown into an amazing person,” said the teen’s father, Curtis Axsom.
Unless otherwise noted, the following details come from Conner Axsom’s written account.
A near-fatal slip
Conner was driving his family’s boat on Harrison Lake shortly before 6 p.m. last month when he saw a neighbor, 83-year-old Lainie Horn, in the water next to her boat.
“When I stepped on the dock from the boat, which I have done a thousand times, the boat moved,” Lainie said. All evidence indicates she hit her head on the dock, rendering her unconscious as she fell into the lake.
While a good distance away, Conner could still see Lainie’s husband, Harry Horn, on his stomach frantically struggling to reach his wife. However, Harry, 87, suffers from both Parkinson’s disease and kyphosis (often called hunchback), Lainie said. In addition, Harry has not fully recovered from surgery to his lower back and can’t stand without a walker, she said.
“When I got to my wife, she was unresponsive, unconscious, and face down under the water,” Harry said. “I grabbed her blouse and got her out the best I could. But I was on my stomach and only had so much leverage.”
Conner could tell something was wrong, so he shifted his boat to full speed, rushed to the Horns’ dock, secured his boat away from the couple, and began trying to assess what was taking place.
But there was no time to talk after Harry lost his grip and his wife began to sink in the lake.
The rescue
The teen jumped into the lake to brace Lainie’s head in the shallow water, which prevented further injuries from the nearby dock and boat and also allowed her to breathe. But Conner could see excessive bleeding from Lainie’s head.
Slowly and carefully, Conner moved her to the shore, carried her out of the water and set her to rest in pea gravel. When the bleeding worsened, the teen sat on the ground and used his legs to brace her head.
Due to exposure to both water and blood, Conner’s cell phone and Apple watch didn’t function as he attempted to call for help. For a moment, the teen struggled to keep his frustrations in check. But after quickly regaining his composure, Conner took off his Boy Scout National Jamboree t-shirt and wrapped it around Lainie’s head to keep pressure on the wound.
Help arrived unexpectedly in the form of an emergency medical technician visiting from Ohio. The EMT began providing assistance after hearing both Conner and Harry working to save the woman’s life.
While the EMT was trying to stabilize Lainie, he gave Axsom his own cell phone to reach 911 and the call went right through. When first responders arrived, they placed a neck collar on the victim and moved her to a nearby church already designated as the site for emergency helicopters to land at Harrison Lake.
Recovery
Lainie recalls she regained consciousness after being placed in a Lifeline helicopter to be flown to IU Health Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis.
For the next five days, she was kept under a watchful eye in Methodist’s trauma center before being transferred to Columbus Regional Hospital for six days of physical therapy, Harry said.
Kelly said her stepson did one other thing that may have helped save Lainie. He managed to calm down Harry, who was understandably frustrated by his physical limitations, she said.
This allowed the husband to clear his head to tell medical personnel his wife’s blood type, what medications she takes and other vital medical information, Kelly said.
A humble hero
Three days later, Conner was going through the final stage of being inducted as an Eagle Scout by a board of review. It included a series of questions and answers regarding, among other things, what a Scout stands for.
But in his replies, the teen did not even mention his significant role in the events that occurred at Harrison Lake just three days earlier. The only time Conner brings up the topic is to inquire on the progress of Lainie’s recovery, Kelly said.
However, news travels fast these days. Nearly every person at the Scout meeting was already aware of the rescue, said the teen’s father, Curtis Axsom. That included a scout leader, David Dwyer, who asked Conner to write his own account of what happened that could be sent to the National Boy Scouts headquarters in Irving, Texas.
As he reflects back on last month, Harry said there’s no question that Conner played an very instrumental role in saving his wife.
“He was very astute and mature to immediately grasp how serious the situation was — and it was really serious” Harry said. “I think Conner also proved himself to be an advanced young man, but one who is caring and concerned about others.”
As for the woman he saved, Lainie has no doubt about the teen’s role in saving her life.
“If it hadn’t been for Conner, my husband would have had to let me go,” she said.
So was it fate or just coincidence that Conner Axsom was at the right place at the right time to save Lainie Horn?
“I think God intended for Conner to save her,” Kelly Axsom said. “If Conner hadn’t been there, I don’t think she’d be here.”
Upon hearing Kelly’s interpretation of the rescue, Lainie chuckled just a bit.
“I’ll agree with that,” she said. “The Lord isn’t finished with me yet.”
