VIDEO — Teen Honored for Saving Wounded Officer’s Life: ‘It All Was Instinct’

A teenager is being honored for putting herself in harm’s way to save a police officer’s life in Excelsior Springs, Missouri.

Seventeen-year-old Ava Donegan rushed to aid the officer once he was shot but says, “I still think anyone would have done it,” KMBC reported Thursday.

During a recent ceremony, Clay County Sheriff Will Akin gave the young woman a Certificate of Recognition and a challenge coin and she also received a $2,000 scholarship from Chuck Anderson Ford.

The incident happened on October 1 when Donegan and a friend were stopped at a red light and saw two Excelsior Springs Police Department (ESPD) officers trying to pull over a driver wanted for assaulting an officer.

The suspect opened fire, shooting one of the officers in the shoulder and wrist before the other officer fatally shot the suspect in the head.

In a social media post on Friday, the Clay County, Missouri Sheriff detailed the incident and said Officer Andrew Stott ran to Donegan’s car once he was shot:

Officer Stott pointed out where his tourniquet was on his outer carrier vest. Ava helped him retrieve it and put it on his wounded right arm. Because of his injuries, he could not use his radio, so Ava pressed his radio button so he could tell dispatchers what happened. Finally, she helped him take off his outer vest so he could receive medical treatment.

“When I realized he needed help, it all was instinct. Luckily, my Dad’s an ICU nurse so I was familiar with the tourniquet so I knew how to do it,” Donegan told KMBC in the days after the shooting.

The officer has since undergone several surgeries but is expected to recover.

Meanwhile, community members gave Donegan a standing ovation to honor her for remaining calm when she was called upon to help save a life:

You can tell by the look of astonishment on her face at the standing ovation she received how humble local hero and teenager Ava Donegan is. She was recognized tonight by @SheriffClayCo for helping save an Excelsior Springs' officer's life after he was shot twice. Way to go Ava! pic.twitter.com/v191OLOLNH

— myCTAmanda (@myCTAmanda1) November 18, 2022

“I’m just glad that he is okay,” the young woman said of the policeman.