Going on the same paper route for 2½ years can become routine for any teenager. The same paper route that a 16 year-old Enfield teen goes on every day turned into an experience he’ll never forget.
Wayne DeBottis was finishing up his route on a recent Saturday when he noticed something was different at an elderly customer’s house. First, DeBottis saw a bag on the floor. As he walked closer to the house, he saw shoes on the ground. Finally, he saw the garage door was open and under the car was an 81-year-old woman.
“I was just shocked, worried for her, panic almost,” said DeBottis.
He tried to talk to the woman, but she could only respond by mumbling. She was also shivering in the frigid temperatures. Debottis then ran to a neighbor’s house and called 911.
The ambulance arrived and took the woman to Baystate Medical Center in Springfield. She is currently at a rehab facility and her condition is improving. The woman had suffered hypothermia. Responders on the scene said if it wasn’t for DeBottis’ quick thinking, the story could have been tragic.
“It makes me feel good,” said DeBottis.
The boy’s mother Deborah DeBottis says that her son is a mature young man. Not only does he have a paper route, but also he gets good grades, and has even started to take classes at the community college. She says she was proud to find out what he had done.
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“For him it’s natural,” said Deborah DeBottis. “He’s very easy going, laid back, he wants to be a police man when he’s older.”
DeBottis stayed with the woman until the ambulance left. He then finished his paper route, delivering the Journal Inquirer on December 19th.
“There was only 4 papers left,” said DeBottis modestly.
