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EDITORIAL

The recording of the 911 call that Tony Sharpe made when his mother collapsed last year is enough to make a mother’s eyes misty.

“Mommy fell,” he says.

“She’s sick,” he warns.

“That’s why she needs an ambulance,” he tells the 911 dispatcher.

Beyond the local and national media attention since that day, the invitations to appear on national talk shows, and his honor this week in Washington, D.C., with the E-9-1-1 Institute’s “Citizen in Action” award, Tony saved his mother’s life and his actions provided an important story that will not fade with time.

Parents teach their children to memorize their home phone numbers when they think they’re old enough to manage it. They ride bicycles and go for walks and learn their way around their neighborhoods.

Not many start learning things like this at such a young age.

Sen. Ted Stevens recognized Tony’s story in Washington this week and introduced a resolution to name next month “National E-9-1-1 Education month.” The senator also talked about Tony’s example in support of SB 428, a bill forwarded by the E-9-1-1 Caucus that strives to keep nationwide 911 services up to date with ever-changing technology.

These are worthwhile official actions, but on a purely local level the great thing about Tony’s story is that it is simply a great story that is instructive to all parents.

This 4-year-old, with the help of a book that costs less than $10 called “It’s Time to Call 911: What to do in an Emergency,” used the public 911 system to help save his mother’s life.

It speaks not only to the importance of an effective 911 system, but proves to parents that a child can save a life as soon as they are old enough to speak in sentences and recognize numbers.

That’s a simple, but powerful, message.