<<Back
Honey Dew Donuts® in the news
A 'DEW GOODER'
Reported by Rebecca Keister
12/2/05 edition of the Attleboro Sun Chronicle
Chris Baker, a lifelong Norton resident and local landscaper, is far from boastful about saving the life of a fellow resident last month.
But his is proud of being the first recipient of the Honey Dew Donuts Dew Good Award, and said he hopes the award inspires others to aid their neighbors.
"Anyone who can make a difference, somehow, some way, that's a good thing." Baker said at a ceremony Thursday that honored his heroic efforts in rescuing Ann Marie Valliere when her car plunged off a bridge into the Rumford River on Nov. 14.
His prize from Honey Dew, whose founder and President Richard J. Bowen also is a Norton native, was a lifetime supply of free coffee Ð and the thanks and admiration of local police, fire fighters, town officials and residents.
Honey Dew also celebrated the ribbon-cutting of its newly designed Route 123 location, which has stood in that spot since 1986.
The real spotlight, Bowen said, was on Baker.
"I'm here to honor an old friend," Bowen said. "I'm so excited by this that I didn't get any sleep last night,"
Bowen, who started his career with a small coffee and doughnut shop in Norton and now oversees 150 Honey Dew shops, said the timing to give out its first-ever Dew Good award was perfect.
Mulling the idea of giving out a community-pride award to residents of cities and towns where Honey Dew is in business, Bowen learned of Baker's actions through a newspaper article.
"I thought that was awesome, one of the most incredible things I've seen," Bowen said. "When one of us does (something), it's fantastic."
Baker has been humble about his participation in the rescue.
He was driving behind Valliere's car on Route 123 when she hit a bridge abutment and her car landed upside down in the Rumford River.
Baker pulled Valliere unconscious from the water, and local officials have credited him with saving her life.
Baker was on his cell phone when the accident happened, and had a co-worker call 911. When Baker emerged from the water with Valliere, rescue personnel were there.
Being able to help, Baker said, was just a case of being in the right place at the right time.
"I didn't really feel like a hero," he said. "But this award program is a positive thing."
Bowen said Baker showed courage in a situation where not everyone might have responded the same way.
"It was the right person, at the right place at the right time," Bowen said.
Valliere, who has recuperated from the accident, was unable to attend Thursday's ceremony. Baker said he has talked to her several times, and that she is doing well.
"It's a miracle. I don't know how she pulled through," he said.
Source: Attleboro Sun Chronicle.
