MILWAUKIE -- Compassion comes in all shapes and sizes. On Friday, Aug. 15, 2008, it came in the form of Clackamas County Deputy Sheriff Brad O'Neil -- who helped an elderly woman in the heat of the day.
K-9 Deputy O'Neil responded to a report of an elderly female Milwaukie resident suffering from the intense heat building inside her residence.
When Deputy O'Neil reached this elderly female's home, he found that interior temperature was about 90 degrees -- and climbing.
Deputy O'Neil assessed that this woman was in jeopardy, and might not survive the prolonged intense temperatures in her home. He requested assistance from other social agencies -- but was unable to summon anyone who could help with this woman's immediate, life-threatening needs.
So Deputy O'Neil he took it upon himself to personally solve the problem.
He went to a local store and personally purchased, out of his own pocket, an air-conditioning window unit for this woman. Then, with the generous help of Clackamas County Fire District #1 (Oak Grove), O'Neil had the unit installed and ready for the woman to use in a matter of hours.The men and women of the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office who admire Deputy O'Neil learned of his good deed and notified the Sheriff's Office PIO, Det. Jim Strovink. At approximately 6 p.m. this evening (Fri., Aug, 15), Strovink spoke with Deputy O'Neil on the phone as O'Neil was monitoring the cooling airflow inside the residence.
"It's working! It's working!" O'Neil said, ecstatic. "It's finally cooling off in here!"
Deputy O'Neil acted with genuine compassion. He still only knows this woman by her first name.
Sleep in comfort tonight, knowing there are still good men and women out there -- and that many of them are Clackamas County Deputy Sheriffs.
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Contact Info: Jim Strovink, Detective
Public Information Officer