CANTON, Ohio — Ernest Williams served our country in the U.S. Army for two years and was proud to do so.
"Because this is my country, I volunteered," Williams said.
Williams is a double amputee. He lost both of his legs— one in 2018 and the other in 2019— due to poor blood circulation.
On Monday afternoon, the 76-year-old Canton resident took a bus from his apartment to the Canton Veterans Affairs Clinic.
It was bitterly cold with the wind chill factor, making it feel below zero degrees.
"It was freezing cold Monday," Williams recalled.
It turned out the VA was closed due to Presidents' Day, so Williams tried to make his way back to the bus, but his wheelchair got stuck on a sidewalk on Market Avenue S.
A concerned resident, who saw the veteran struggling, called the police.
"My chair got stuck in the ice and that's when the police helped me," Williams said.
Officers Heath Porter and Scott Wohlheter went beyond the call of duty when it became clear that Williams could not operate the wheelchair on his own.
Body-worn camera footage captured the officers approaching Williams and assisting him for several minutes.
"One wheel was locked up so he wasn't able to move and he had been out in those conditions for quite some time," said Lt. Dennis Garren, a spokesman for Canton Police.
The officers gave Williams gloves and hand warmers and then began pushing him.
That proved challenging because the wheelchair was jammed. Porter and Wohlheter took turns pushing Williams and blocking traffic with their cruiser as they headed toward the bus stop.
Williams said he was touched and beyond grateful for the officers' kindness.
"They were helpful. I couldn't believe it," he said. "I don't know what I would have done without them."
The conversation, comforting and pushing, continued for several blocks until the officers spotted a SARTA bus, flagged down the driver and helped Williams get on board the safe, warm bus.
"It's just something that our officer and officers throughout the country do on a daily basis. If they see someone who needs something, they help them. They weren't going to leave that gentleman stranded there in the cold," Garren said.
Williams believes he could have suffered hypothermia if the officers had not stayed by his side. He thanked them for all of their assistance.
"They saved me and I'm very grateful."
