Two Winnipeggers who rescued a young girl and her father from the Red River are being honoured for their bravery. On Friday, Mayor Scott Gillingham presented the Mayor’s Award of Valour to a duo who saved a four-year-old girl and her father, who had gone into the river trying to reach her. Jayclyn Morrissette and Brady Saunders were awarded for their bravery that Aug. 24 day during a ceremony at city hall. “It was kind of crazy what I did,” said Morrissette, who has since been reunited with the family, who thanked her. “I didn’t think at the time who depended on me, but I would do it again.” The pair were at St. John’s Park when they spotted the girl and her father struggling in the water. Morrissette pulled the father to shore with Saunders’ help, then swam back out for the girl. The two performed CPR on the child before first responders arrived. “Jaclyn and Brady went above and beyond what the average Winnipegger, I think, would ever be called upon to do, and they literally risked their lives to save two residents of Winnipeg,” Scott Gillingham said. “It’s nothing short of heroic.” Morrissette said she doesn’t consider herself a hero, adding she was “in the right time, in the right place.” “These are the kind of people that we have in our city that ... when someone’s in need, they’ll step out, they’ll risk their own life to help someone they’ve never met,” Gillingham said. Gillingham said it’s the first time since 2010 that the award has been given to Winnipeggers.
