A Heroic Effort

In early June, Franklin, Indiana and surrounding areas were hit by several storms and torrential downpours.  By noon on Saturday, June 7, the streets were beginning to flood, as was the chapter house basement.  A couple of hours later, two Epsilon Brothers, Nate Sexton and Mat Taylor, became aware neighboring residents were stranded in their homes as flood water from Hurricane Creek continued to rise.

With the assistance of some neighbors the men used Brother Travis Urban’s canoe, which was being stored at the house, to rescue several individuals.  The men walked the canoe through chest deep water to homes, loaded up people and took them to dry land on the Franklin College campus.  The college opened up the Johnson-Dietz residence hall for community members who needed a place to stay.  Around 4:00 p.m. they made one last rescue attempt through the flood water.

“After the first trip, I felt a sense of obligation to these people…there was no stopping until everyone (who was willing) was safe and dry,” said Taylor.

The depth of the water on their last mission neared six-feet in some areas and had a very strong current.  At one point they lost traction, but luckily found a fence under the water that they were able to use to push off and gain momentum.  “If we didn’t find the fence, we might have lost the canoe,” said Sexton.

Ironically enough, Sexton and Brother Pat Yokovich flipped that very canoe a few weeks before during a canoeing trip.

When asked how he felt after that last trip through the flood water Sexton revealed that he was, “relieved more than anything-just thankful; we were pretty lucky.”

During such a challenging time for the Franklin community, these men showed determination and genuine care for individuals at a time when it was needed most.  In total, the Brothers helped rescued 11 people, including three children, one with leukemia.  As Gentlemen of Kappa Delta Rho, we should be proud of their efforts.

Story written by Brian Graham. Thanks to Kappa Delta Rho for permission to use this article.