ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — A Pinellas County teacher who saved a teen in Lake Michigan will be posthumously awarded a Carnegie Medal.
The Carnegie Hero Fund Commission will recognize 16 civilians who risked serious injury or death to save others. The recipients include three teachers in separate incidents who drowned while trying to save children struggling in deep water.
Last June, Thomas Kenning was visiting family in Indiana when he noticed a teen stuck in a rip current in Lake Michigan. His family said Kenning ran into the water without hesitation to save the teen. The teen survived, but Kenning lost his life.
"I think that’s just a true representation of who he is, who he was...always putting other people before himself. He cared so deeply about people and obviously his loved ones, but clearly even strangers," said Shelby Benedicto, a family member.
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Benedicto, whose sister was married to Kenning, spoke to ABC Action News from New York City.
She said the family recently installed a memorial bench at Boyd Hill Nature Preserve in St. Petersburg, a place Kenning loved visiting.
"It’s in a place that he loves and he wants people to enjoy this world and he wants people to leave it better than they found it," said Benedicto.
Kenning taught history at Plato Academy in Pinellas Park. His family said he loved teaching and the environment. He had a master's degree and wrote several books, including "Florida's Mangroves: A Slightly Salty History" and "The Unlikely Parks of Tampa Bay: A Scenic History."
Last month, Kenning would have celebrated his 39th birthday.
"One of the main lessons he taught his kids was how to do critical thinking and not just take what’s fed to you and accept it, to question it and to look into it to see if it’s true," said Kenning's mother told ABC Action News last June.
The Carnegie Hero Fund was created to recognize outstanding acts of selfless heroism performed in the United States and Canada. The Commission awards the Carnegie Medal to those who risk death or serious physical injury to an extraordinary degree while saving or attempting to save the lives of others.
"If you knew Tom, you would know that this is not really his thing. He would not want the big recognition, the big hoopla about him. He’s a hero and we think he deserves that recognition. He embodies all those values and everything that award stands for. We also think it’s great for his legacy," said Benedicto.
To nominate someone for the Carnegie Medal, complete a nomination form online or write to the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission, 436 Seventh Ave., Suite 1101, Pittsburgh, PA 15219. More information on the Carnegie Medal and the history of the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission can be found here.
