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A man and a woman leapt into action at the Harlan Walmart parking lot recently to assist an elderly customer who found himself in danger when he fell out of his vehicle while leaving the parking lot.

Paul Meister, Harlan Walmart Store Manager, talked about the incident just before recognizing the two people who had saved the customer from possibly being badly injured.

“A couple of weeks ago, a customer came into our store – he’s an elderly gentleman – and he parked in the front close to the sidewalk and went inside,” Meister explained. “He came out and got in his truck, started it, put it in gear and reached out for his door to close it and fell out.”

Meister mentioned a Walmart employee, Bryan Skidmore, saw the incident and immediately moved to assist the gentleman.

“He ran over and pulled him away from the truck so it wouldn’t run over him,” Meister said. “The truck was still rolling.”

That’s when a customer, Teresa Gray, decided to assist.

“She saw it and hurried over and reached in and put the truck in park,” Meister said. “It was headed for a bunch of cars, and there were a lot of customers walking around in front of the store. Both of them prevented disasters.”

Meister said it was decided to hold a “Hero Celebration” at Walmart to recognize and honor Skidmore and Gray for their heroic action.

City of Harlan Mayor Joe Meadors attended the celebration, along with Harlan City Police Chief Winston Yeary.

“This is part of what makes Harlan County a special place,” Meadors said during the celebration. “We have people who volunteer their time and efforts when called upon and sometimes they just respond. Our first responders – our police and firemen – they can’t be everywhere at the same time, so it’s important for our citizens to pay attention and when they can help another citizen. I want to thank you both for your efforts. You are to be commended for it.”

Yeary also expressed his appreciation to Skidmore and Gray for their action, stating that the pair probably saved a life.

Skidmore and Gray were each presented with a plaque commemorating their heroic action while Walmart employees and customers watched and applauded.

The identity of the person pulled from harm’s way was not made available for privacy reasons.