Matthew Bedwell | Young Hero Award from Alabama Public Television
EDUCATION

Matthew Bedwell

Open Door Christian School

Tuscaloosa, Alabama

In just seconds a family vacation went terribly wrong. One moment three-year-old Joseph Seale was playfully splashing about in a hotel pool, the next he was drowning. Family friend Matthew Bedwell, a 15-year-old ninth grader at Open Door Christian School, dove in and pulled the child out. Thanks to a recent CPR class, Matthew knew how to help Joseph clear his lungs. Had Matthew not acted quickly, Joseph surely would have drowned. Though Matthew has been treated as a hero since this event, he tends to shy from the attention.

Matthew is consistently on the Open Door Christian School honors roll, and excels at basketball. According to Rebekah Ensor a school administrator “I can’t think of a finer young man to fit the profile of a young hero. He truly embodies all the qualities and characteristics of heroism, and I fully and wholeheartedly recommend him for this award.”

Young Hero Sponsors

The Young Heroes Program is made possible through the support of:

Derek Chen

The
Harris Trust

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APT EDUCATION SPONSORS

These educational programs and services of Alabama Public Television made possible by the generous support of the following contributors:

Community Events & Engagement
  • Books-A-Million, Young Heroes
  • Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Alabama, Be My Neighbor Day/Young Heroes
  • Brookmont Capital Management, Young Heroes
  • C. W. Daniel Charitable Trust, Young Heroes
  • Medical Properties Trust, Young Heroes
  • Fred Rogers Productions/PNC, Be My Neighbor Day
  • WNET-CPB, Sesame Street in Communities
General Support
  • Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB)
  • Public Broadcasting Services (PBS)
Learning Adventures
  • Alabama Bicentennial Commission
  • Alabama Humanities Foundation
    a state program of the National Endowment for the Humanities
  • Alabama State Council on the Arts
    a state program of the National Endowment for the Arts
  • American Graduate
    a program of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting
  • Daniel Foundation of Alabama
  • Malone Family Foundation
  • Robert Meyer Foundation
  • Sybil Smith Foundation
  • Troy Univiersity
  • U.S. Space & Rocket Center
  • Wells Fargo Foundation
Media Library
  • Corporation for Public Broadcasting, American Graduate
  • Corporation for Public Broadcasting, American Graduate, Getting To Work
PBS Kids Programs
  • Alabama Department of Human Resources
  • Alabama Power Company
  • Books-A-Million
  • Children’s of Alabama
  • HEAL United
  • Medical Properties Trust
  • U.S. Space & Rocket Center
Professional Development for Educators
  • Community Foundation of South Alabama, PBS KIDS EdCamp
  • Sybil Smith Foundation, PBS KIDS EdCamp
Workforce Development
  • CAWACO, Career Forward
  • Southeast Alabama Works, Career Forward

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