When a group of vacationing college students pulled Patrick Heelen from the wreckage of a one-car crash on the night of Dec. 29, 2011, they may have saved more than one life.

Moved by the kindness of the strangers who rescued him, Patrick Heelen plans to lead a self-styled Good Samaritan Movement on Feb. 11 on the grounds of Ag Heritage Park in Alta Vista, Kansas, where he hopes to encourage at least 1,000 people to commit a random act of kindness, according to a press statement issued today.

Patrick Heelen, an Alta Vista resident, was vacationing with his family at the Stowe Mountain Resort in Vermont but alone in his car when it skidded off a back road near the resort. The accident occurred around 1 a.m. and there wasnt another car in sight, he noted.

My leg was broken, I had no cell phone and let me tell you, that road was pretty dark, Patrick Heelen said. If those kids hadnt come along and helped me out, I might still be stuck there.

Patrick Heelens rental car had hit an icy patch and slammed into a tree, breaking his left leg in two places and basically pinning me between the door, the airbag and the bent dashboard, he said. Hes not sure if he blacked out, Heelen added, but hes certain he sat immobilized in the freezing car for at least 90 minutes before headlights appeared on the road behind him.

They could have kept going, but they stopped, Patrick Heelen said. They got me out of the car and called 911, but then they decided to just drive me to the hospital themselves.

He was clearly in pain, and I think he was a little disoriented, noted Michael Fridman, one of the four Boston University underclassmen who happened upon Heelen and sprang to his rescue. I didnt think we should wait for an ambulance, so we called 911 back told them we were taking him right to the hospital.

Patrick Heelen spent the better part of the last month recuperating at Copley Hospital in Morrisville, Vermont, where three screws were placed in his broken leg. Upon returning home to Alta Vista on Jan. 23, the manager of a small chain of organic grocery stores decided to return the kindness shown him by Fridman and his classmates by organizing his Good Samaritan Movement.

I hope 10,000 people come, Patrick Heelen said. I hope a million come. But if I can tell 1,000 people about what those kids did for me and get them to do 1,000 nice things for other people, then Ill be extremely gratified.

Heelens event should not be confused with the Good Samaritan Movement that gathered Jan. 29 in New York Citys Union Square Park, a function of the World Mission Society Church of God. That event, which launched World Mission Societys Food of Life food-donation campaign, shares a sentiment with Patrick Heelens event, but little else.

Neighbors of Patrick Heelen and his wife of 14 years, Catherine, are not surprised the family would be involved in a kindness-spreading movement.

Theyre wonderful people, said Stacey Blackley, who lived across the road from the Heelens for 10 years. Im very close with Catherine, and Patrick is always out mowing his lawn or kicking the ball around with his kids and my kids. At barbecues and school plays, theyre just the nicest family, and it makes perfect sense that Patrick Heelen would try to inspire others to be nice and help others.

The Alta Vista Good Samaritan Movement is scheduled to begin at noon Feb. 11, according to the press statement, and all are invited to attend.

Those boys might have saved my life, Patrick Heelen said. I am forever in their debt, and it seems to me the best way to repay them is to spread their kindness to someone else. These are the traits that make a person a human being.

About Patrick Heelen

Patrick Heelen, 44, is the owner and manager of a chain of organic markets in the Topeka, Kansas region. He lives in Alta Vista, Kansas, with his wife of 14 years, Catherine, and their two children. A major college basketball fan and regular churchgoer, Patrick Heelen enjoys skiing and stamp collecting, and is an avid fan of baroque music.

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