By KEN de la BASTIDE
BUNKER HILL — With an angelic smile and a slight wave of her hand, Lillian Hulette met the man who saved her life.
After the 6-year-old suffered severe injuries in a Jan. 27 accident, Miami County Sheriff Deputy Jeff Williams revived her by performing CPR and chest compressions.
The 44-year-old deputy waited in anticipation last week at the BP station on U.S. 31 for the family he hadn’t seen since the accident.
Lillian’s father, Trevor, greeted him with an embrace.
“He saved her life ... he saved her life,” Trevor Hulette repeated. “She wouldn’t be here right now if not for him being there. God was with her that morning and with her the whole time [at the hospital].”
Seeing Lillian, Williams said, brought back a flood of emotions from the morning of the crash.
“Thank God she is here today,” he said. “She looks like she’s leading a normal life.”
It was a routine morning for Williams the day of the crash. He had just gotten into his patrol car after eating breakfast at a restaurant outside the Miami Correctional Facility.
“I just got into my car and heard the call,” he recalled. “The accident was less than 2 miles away. I got there real quickly.”
When Williams arrived at the scene of the two-vehicle accident at the intersection of 900 South and 200 West in Miami County, he saw Jenna Ambrose’s car in a field. Ambrose was being assisted by two men, one of whom was the driver of the other car. The men were pulling Lillian from the passenger’s side to the driver’s side.
“Mom was screaming, ‘I don’t think she’s breathing and doesn’t have a pulse,’” Williams said. “Mom [attempted] CPR, and I told one of the men to grab her and keep her busy.”
Williams, like all deputies, had received CPR training and had performed CPR in the past on infants, children and adults.
“In my mind, it seemed like she came around quickly, but I lost track of time,” he said. “Seemed like it took forever for the actual first responders to arrive, but it probably wasn’t that long. I can sympathize with the mother.
“I kept telling myself, ‘This little girl is not going to die today,’” Williams continued. “That was my main concern. If this little girl has a chance, she will have it today,” he said.
He said it is always more difficult for law enforcement officers when dealing with a child. The death of a child, he said, sticks with you. Having dealt with many deaths during his years on the force, Williams would know.
Williams later learned that Lillian had a collapsed and a partially collapsed lung. She also had head trauma, requiring surgery.
“I met with her mother, and we kept in touch on Facebook,” he said. “We kept in constant contact when she was in ICU in Fort Wayne. I called every day, to see if she was improving.”
Ambrose doesn’t remember much about the accident.
“I remember being halfway through the intersection and saw a grille,” she said. “I’m sure someone helped me get [Lillian] out of the car.”
She remembers sitting in a car, watching Williams perform CPR and chest compressions on her daughter.
“He was our guardian angel that day,” she said.
Ambrose said her daughter doesn’t remember the accident or the following hospital stay. She is now starting to go back to school on a limited basis.
She said Williams sent a teddy bear to Lillian while she was in the hospital and called every day.
“He’s an awesome guy,” Ambrose said.
Williams thinks of that morning’s events on a daily basis.
“By the grace of God I was less than 2 miles away,” he said. “It’s one thing I will always remember. [I will] replay those days over and over.”
Williams said he is embarrassed when people refer to him as a hero.
“I would have done what I could regardless of whether or not I was a police officer,” he continued. “People that know me would say I’ve never been one to turn my back on someone in need of help.”
For his actions that morning Williams was presented with a life-saving medal from the sheriff department.
Miami County Sheriff Ken Roland said all law enforcement personnel are trained on what to do and how to react so that those actions come naturally.
“Most police officers are not out there for the glory. Go out and do your job,” he said, “not out for any praise.”
Roland said he believes people of Miami County appreciate the officers.
“It does let the public know what kind of people are working out here,” he said. “They don’t worry about their own safety. Someone needs help and they do it.”
• Ken de la Bastide is the Kokomo Tribune enterprise editor. He can be reached at 765-454-8580 or via e-mail at ken.delabastide@kokomotribune.com
