In this episode of Hidden Brain Media’s series My Unsung Hero, host Shankar Vedantam introduces Leah Bartell, who recounts a frightening night in 1994 when she was walking alone across her Connecticut college campus at 2:30 a.m. Two tall, clearly intoxicated men surrounded her, one in front and one behind. Suddenly a car pulled over and a man and a woman emerged; the man asked if she was okay, and then confronted the two drunk men, allowing Leah to flee to safety. She never learned what happened to the aggressors, but she knows the strangers saved her from a potentially violent fate. Leah expresses deep gratitude, thanking them for noticing and speaking up when many might have ignored the situation. The episode frames this personal testimony as an example of everyday heroism and invites listeners to submit their own unsung‑hero stories via myunsunghero.org.
From Hidden Brain Media, I'm Shankar Vedantam. This is My Unsung Hero, stories where one person reached out to help another in a time of need.
This story is about 2 unsung heroes. One, I don't even know if it was a man or a woman, someone I will probably never know.
My 8th grade English teacher My unsung hero.
Today's story comes from Leah Bartell.
It was 1994, and I was 20 years old. I had stayed for the summer at my college campus in Connecticut just to work in the library and earn some money. And a few of my friends had stayed as well. So one night I was over at a friend's house and decided to walk home. It was about 2:30 in the morning, and I had to walk quite a distance from one end of the campus to the other. I was walking down a very dark street and 2 men approached me. They were both really tall, and I'm about 5 feet tall and small. And they were clearly drunk. One of them was standing in front of me and the other one was standing behind me. And I didn't know what to do. I didn't know what was going to happen, but I knew it was going to be bad. And all of a sudden, a car pulled over and 2 people got out of the car, a man and a woman. And the man asked me, are you okay? And I said no. And he immediately engaged with the 2 men to try to get them away from me. And I don't know what happened next because I just ran. I was so terrified. I ran straight to my house and locked the doors. I don't know what happened that night. But I do know that those 2 people saved me from a horrible fate. And I am so grateful to them, and they are my unsung heroes. If I could say anything to them, I would say thank you for noticing what so many people would have driven past and for speaking up. At a moment when you didn't have to.
Leah Bartell of Woburn, Massachusetts. Her major in college was music, and she went on to become a professional violinist. Today, she's a performer and an educator. Leah tells us, I hope my story inspires someone to step in to help a stranger in need, Or simply to ask the question, are you okay? If you'd like to share the story of an unsung hero who made a difference in your life, it's easy to do. Go to myunsunghero.org where we have information about how to record and send your story to us. If you enjoy these stories, please be sure to share this podcast with a friend. Word-of-mouth recommendations really make a difference. I'm Shankar Vedantam. See you soon.
