Carnegie Hero Fund President Eric Zahren, left, removes the Carnegie Medal from its case to show recipient, Carnegie Hero Julie K. Callaghan, of Chilliwack, B.C. Zahren presented the medal to Callaghan during a ceremony held Dec. 13, 2019, at the RCMP Upper Fraser Valley Regional Detachment headquarters in Chilliwack.
Callaghan was awarded the Carnegie Medal for a 2018 act in which she attempted to rescue a 40-year-old man from being struck by a train after a wheel on his motorized wheelchair got caught on the track. Callaghan stood next to her firefighter husband, Darren, and expressed a tearful thanks.
“Thank you to everyone who has shown me love and support even when I don’t feel like I deserve the love and support … I don’t really know what to say except thank you … Just thank you, and I’ve got all your backs if you’re ever in trouble. I would do it again,” she said.