PORT TOWNSEND — As Greg Bryant, holder of the national Carnegie Medal for heroism, was honored with an award from Port Townsend Kiwanis last week, he was more concerned about the man whose wife died after he pulled her from a burning building.
“He lost his wife,” Bryant said of Bob Bundy, who came to last week’s ceremony as Bryant’s guest of honor.
“I just got burned. He lost her. That’s what is really sad.”
Bryant, now 22, was driving a truck for Edensaw Woods of Port Townsend when he spotted a house engulfed in flames in Chimacum on May 21, 2008.
After calling 9-1-1, he dashed into the house and pulled Sandra Bundy — who was alone in the home — from the flames, burning his head and arms severely.
She died in Bryant’s arms shortly after he rescued her.
Special medal
The local chapter of Kiwanis, with the blessing of the Kiwanis International Foundation, awarded the Robert P. Connelly Medal to Bryant at the chapter’s annual membership meeting.
Connelly, a 34-year-old Kiwanis member, died Sept. 23, 1966, when he attempted to rescue a physically handicapped woman from train tracks after she had fallen.
Just like Connelly, said Patrick Ewing, the northwest governor of Kiwanis, Bryant had shown the spirit of Kiwanis by putting his own personal safety second to saving the life of another.
“Greg risked death or physical harm when he might just have passed along the way,” Ewing said as he presented Bryant with the award. “This man is what Kiwanis is all about.
“Greg, a former volunteer firefighter, knew he didn’t have the gear or support to rescue that woman from a burning building that day but he went in anyway.
“He made a difference in that person’s life.”
As Ewing spoke, Bryant sat quietly in the front row and smiled.
“I’m very, very grateful that Kiwanis thinks I deserve this award,” Bryant said. “Still, it might just mean that the top drawer is getting full.”
Several awards
At his home in Port Hadlock, Bryant has a desk drawer where he keeps his accolades.
In the drawer is the Carnegie Medal for heroism, which he was awarded in April, one of 19 civilians nationwide who were given the medal and $6,000.
There are also the other awards: The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, East Jefferson Fire-Rescue and the Olympic Chapter of the American Red Cross have all recognized Bryant as a hero for his actions.
Bryant has long been unimpressed with tales of his heroism, often saying he wishes the whole thing would go away.
He also has thanked all the members of the community who donated to help him pay his medical bills.
One of the reasons Bryant had taken the job with EdensawWoods, a Port Townsend specialty wood company, was to get medical insurance.
It was only a week later that he suffered second- and third-degree burns when he rescued Sandra Bundy from the fire that East Jefferson Fire-Rescue investigators say was sparked by a faulty electrical cord on a hospital bed she used.
Medical benefits for Edensaw employees take 90 days to start.
Bryant tried to drive himself to the hospital in Port Townsend because he couldn’t afford an ambulance, but Tony Hernandez, then the undersheriff but now Jefferson County Sheriff, intercepted him.
He was flown to Harborview Medical Center for treatment in the burn ward, and was released a week later, on his 21st birthday.
Edensaw owner Jim Ferris set up two bank accounts for donations to help defray Bryant’s medical expenses, and to help Bob Bundy.
Thousands of dollars in donations helped defray Bryant’s medical bills.
After he recovered, Bryant worked for Edensaw for about one year. He recently was laid off for economic reasons, and is now working construction part-time.
Bryant said at the time that he wished he could have done more to save Sandra Bundy.
Made a difference
Ewing said he still made a difference that day.
“There was a woman in need, and Greg answered that call,” he said.
“Unfortunately we do not have that victim with us today, but she is in our hearts.”
When Ewing spoke of Sandra Bundy’s death, Bryant choked up and looked at Bundy.
After accepting the award, he gave it to Bundy to look at.
The two talked not of the past, not of the awards, but of the future — everything from Bundy’s rental home to the finer points of spicy foods.
When asked about the past, Bundy, now 74 years old, had only one thing to say.
“Time heals all wounds,” he said.
“We’re all getting there.”
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Reporter Erik Hidle can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at erik.hidle@peninsuladailynews.com.
