Utah people....WOW! (Lehi, Eagle Mountain, Saratoga Springs: home, middle school, living in)

[VC dreamer]

Last night the weather was a mess out here, as those of you who live out here know, the wind and snow made for a very cold, messy ride home, and visibility out here in Saratoga Springs, Lehi, and Eagle Mountain was at times zero. Not the kind of weather that one would want to spend anytime out in....

On his way home from work last night, my husband slid off the back country road he was on, and him and the truck he was driving ('02 dodge ram, diesel 3/4 ton) ended up laying on the left side in a drainage ditch filled with cold muddy water.
Four men stopped, individually and together helped him climb out of the passenger side of his truck. Another gentleman, stopped to see if he needed anything and when he said that he had called me and that I was on my way...this gentleman asked for the desription of my car...found me, and flagged me down to tell me that he would lead me to my husband and the accident scene. (Which he did)
Once I arrived there, got my husband in the car to get warm, and make sure he was okay, (he was, and had also called 911) I was absolutely AMAZED by the number of people who stopped to see if they could help in any way...the majority of people actually getting out of their cars and walking over to us.
A Lehi police officer arrived within 15 mins of calling 911 and stayed with us.
The tow truck driver arrived shortly after the officer called him, and got the truck out, even though it meant that he had to climb down into the ditch, into the cold icy water, to hook up the truck......

NEVER....NEVER...in my 34 years of living in CA have I ever encountered so many people willing to help someone else. In fact it's been my experience that the opposite is true....they slow down to look....but never help.

So, for all you nameless men and women, who stop to help those in need....

THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

And as for me, and for all the things I thought about life here in Utah that weren't very nice....well, I'm having a huge slice of crow pie...and considering a second piece!

[BuhByeCalifornia]

Thank you for sharing this.

My dh was stuck in that mess as well and he finally got home around 2:00 am...

I'm so glad both of you made it home okay.

I was completely shocked at my first encounter with Utah friendliness when I was checking out BYU years and years ago. A friend and I drove up from Los Angeles and we were lost on campus. We asked a young gal in her car for directions and she just said, "Hop in...I'll take ya!" If that happened in California, we would turn around and run for our lives.

[Purplegrapes]

We were driving on a back road once and saw some rocks along the side of the road..My husband and I stopped and got out to go look at them...In the meantime a car passed on the road then turned back around...The man called out is everything all right, do you need some help? So we said we are ok, thanks for asking though!...I told my husband..If we were in Ca. First off no one would have stopped... Secondly, If someone would have stopped it would probably be someone who wa coming to rob us lol...

That was great!

[Robhu]

I don't live in Utah but the wife has a twin sister that does so we go there every couple of years. Everyone just seems to look out for eveybody else that might need some kind of help. Seems to be a way of life for the good people in Utah. At least the ones I've met.
I have seriously thought about retiring there. I share their attitude.

[east_tennessee_family]

Thank you so much for sharing this. Here in Tennessee that is a common practice to help out and to know that the good folks in Utah share the same attitude is very enlightening!!!!!! We even pull our cars over and stop for funeral processions as our parents taught us in the past. I drive a school bus and if I happen to be behind the wheel when a procession goes by, no matter how loud my kids are they ALWAYS get deathly quiet out of respect. I even have a middle school age boy(who gives me the most trouble in being loud) who yells out QUIET>>>THAT COULD BE YOUR MAMA>>>SHOW SOME RESPECT GUYS!!!!!...Makes me VERY proud of these kids I haul every day.

[VC dreamer]

It's so refreshing to know that people still care about each other, in this day and age. I a just so grateful for these people helping my husband. He is the love of my life. Even two days later, I am still so amazed by people....and even the cop. In CA, the last person you wanted was a cop showing up....but the Lehi cop who helped us out....he was so nice....first thing he wanted to know....was anyone hurt....amazing. In CA you learn very quickly that the ones to be suspicious (sp) of are the cops....it's nice to know that here they actually have some integrity (sp).
You know....this whole situation has given me cause to re-think a lot of my opinions. Or, maybe just opened my eyes.

[chazcrew]

I'm glad you had such a good experience. I had several family members out in that mess, and was very relieved when they finally all made it to their destinations (hours and hours later)!

I do think most people have a genuine desire to help others. I'm glad they followed through on that instinct in your case!

[ginger44]

Originally Posted by VC dreamer

It's so refreshing to know that people still care about each other, in this day and age. I a just so grateful for these people helping my husband. He is the love of my life. Even two days later, I am still so amazed by people....and even the cop. In CA, the last person you wanted was a cop showing up....but the Lehi cop who helped us out....he was so nice....first thing he wanted to know....was anyone hurt....amazing. In CA you learn very quickly that the ones to be suspicious (sp) of are the cops....it's nice to know that here they actually have some integrity (sp).
You know....this whole situation has given me cause to re-think a lot of my opinions. Or, maybe just opened my eyes.

Awesome story - thanks for sharing!

[alexei27]

Not surprised really...as a former Utah resident...this type of situation was definitely one of the good memories of living there!

[jazzlover]

That kind of courteous behavior used to be the norm in the rural Rocky Mountain West, as well as in many of the larger "metro" areas. Unfortunately, it is becoming less and less common as more "big-city" types from larger metro areas move into the region. Metro Denver has already largely succumbed to the kind of "California" attitude that the OP has related experiencing in California. I hope the Wasatch Front does not follow that example. I have even seen a "hardening" of helpful attitudes in many rural areas of Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, Wyoming, Idaho, and Montana in my travels. That may be because the mass media now makes less helpful and less social behavior exhibited in some of the big American cities seem like the acceptable norm.

I'm glad the OP got the assistance the she and her husband obviously needed. There are still a lot of good people in the Rocky Mountain region who believe in helping one another. Too bad that attitude can't spread back into a lot of places where it has largely disappeared.