Sara Schaller

Sara Schaller saved a girl from drowning, Porter, Indiana, June 20, 2023. The girl, 14, and her 18-year-old cousin were caught in high waves and a rip current on Lake Michigan at Indiana Dunes National Park. The current swept them out about 300 feet from shore into cold water about 10 feet deep. Alerted as she walked on the beach with her 4-year-old daughter, Schaller, 42, veterinary nurse, asked a woman to watch her daughter and ran into the surf as 4-foot waves crashed down on her. As the water grew deeper she swam to the girl, who was heavier than Schaller and fading in and out of consciousness. With her back facing the beach, Schaller then grabbed the girl under both arms and swam backwards until she could touch bottom on a sandbar. From there, Schaller was able to pull the girl to the beach. Another beachgoer swam out to the cousin, who was unresponsive and had been washed closer to shore by the waves, and brought him back to shore with the help of others. The cousin was later pronounced dead at a hospital. Paramedics treated the girl and she recovered at the hospital. Schaller was exhausted but uninjured.