Ralph Vanderscheer died attempting to save Rodger S. Martin from drowning, Escott, Ontario, June 13, 1964. When Rodger, 10, waded into a creek where the moss-covered bottom descended sharply, he lost his footing, was submerged briefly, and floundered as he called for help. Ralph, 15, schoolboy, and his fourteen-year-old brother, the only others present, were poor swimmers. Telling his brother to stay back, Ralph squatted at the waters edge and waded into the creek. Cautiously he moved to four feet from the bank and in water four feet deep extended a hand to Rodger, who meanwhile had been submerged briefly twice. Rodger grasped Ralph’s hand and, submerging again, pulled him under in deeper water. They returned to the surface together, floundering wildly. Ralph told his brother to get help and then sank again with Rodger. Neither returned to the surface. Divers later recovered their bodies.
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