12-year old Yorkville boys describe saving their friend from near-drowning

After helping save their friend from a near pool-drowning accident, 12-year old Yorkville boys Gavin Faitz and Daniel Torres are grateful their quick thinking allowed their friend to make a full recovery.

Both Faitz and Torres received special accommodations from the Yorkville Police Department on Aug. 27 for their heroic actions during the frightening situation on July 27 when the boys rescued 12-year old Kaden Luangvila from the bottom of a pool and swam him over to the edge.

Faitz’s parents were beside themselves when they heard the police department wanted to award their son the Valor and Lifesaving Awards “We recognized the magnitude of what he’d actually done, but we both got a little choked-up hearing the full story for the first time,” said Gavin’s father, Jimmy Faitz.

Gavin’s mother, Sarah Faitz, attributes her son’s heroic actions to what she calls the “helper gene” residing within him.

“We’re super proud of both Gavin and Daniel and we are so grateful he is alright and doing well now,” Sarah Faitz said. “Everyone in the community was so kind throughout the ordeal, including the police officers; we are very honored.”

Gavin said he was in shock when he was told he would be receiving awards before the Yorkville City Council. He attributes his strength underwater from learning how to swim during summers spent on a lake in Michigan. Even though the pool is around eight feet deep, he was not afraid to take action when he first noticed something was wrong that late July afternoon.

“I was confused what he was doing at the bottom, but knew something was wrong because he was not moving around and wasn’t wearing his goggles,” Gavin said. “When I brought him up, he was not moving. When I put my hand on his chest, I could not feel him breathing.”

Gavin said he was grateful that his “band-buddy,” Daniel Torres, was waiting by the pool’s edge to help pull the boy to safety.

After receiving the Lifesaving Award for hauling the boy out of the water and performing chest compressions until help arrived, Torres said he’s just happy his friend is safe and healthy again.

“At first, I didn’t know if they were joking,” Torres said. “I knew he wasn’t pretending when he was not responding at all. I was scared because he’s my friend.”

Torres said he wasn’t sure where he learned the idea to perform chest compressions.

“I did not really think about it at first, I just acted out of instinct,” Daniel Torres said.

Torres’ parents, Julia and Donnie Torres, said they are going to frame their son’s award and hang it in his room so he can always feel proud of helping those in need.

“He’s the type of boy who is always mediating between his friends if they are arguing. He tries to make everyone always feel at peace,” his father said. “We couldn’t be more proud of him.”