This past fall, Steven Anuszkiewicz, NEW HAVEN 2019, was at a local farm buying pumpkins with his chapter brothers and sorority women when he noticed 3-year-old Nicholas Henninger bloody his head from a fall on a rock. Anuszkiewicz, an emergency medical technician who is studying to be a paramedic, quickly grabbed a pair of plastic gloves out of his pockets and tended to Henninger until the bleeding stopped, according to the boy's father, Chris Henninger. The boy later received stitches at a local emergency room. ” … for some reason that day I placed two pairs of gloves in my back pocket,” writes Anuszkiewicz in an email. “I am unsure why, but I believe it was God guiding me because he had a plan for me that day.”
In response to Anuszkiewicz's actions, Chris Henninger wrote the following email lauding the undergraduate's actions.
“As a fellow Greek[-letter organization] member back in the day, I know the perception that is out there about fraternities and sororities. People don’t see the great contributions we make to the community; [instead,] they focus on the bad. That is why I’m writing to you today; you have an amazing chapter at the University of New Haven. Yesterday my son and I were visiting his favorite local farm to buy cornstalks and hay. The [University] of New Haven chapter of Sigma Chi was there with a sorority buying pumpkins from a local farmer for a charity event they were running the next day. They were all super friendly and even let me and my son go before them. Then in a flash, my fun outing with my son turned into a nightmare for a parent. He was taking a ride on the hay and fell off, smashing his head on a rock. As a father it seemed like everything was in slow motion; I saw him fall and was moving [to get him] before his head even hit [the rock], but I was too late. I got to him just as he hit [it] and started wiping off the blood instantly. One thing I did notice in that split second was a young man jumping out of his seat and pulling plastic gloves out of his pockets. This outstanding brother of your fraternity [Steven Anuszkiewicz] was [an emergency medical technician] and took control of the situation immediately. Instead of [me] freaking out like I could have [while] being covered in my son's blood, I felt like my son was in good hands. [Anuszkiewicz] spent at least 30 minutes taking care of my son, keeping him talking and reassuring him that he was OK. The other brothers of your fraternity were equally amazing. [My son] would ask for something and they would run to go get it for him. One brother even bought my son an ice cream to try to cheer him up. Once the bleeding stopped, we walked back to my car which your brothers had so kindly packed [with] all my things for me. They entertained my son as I changed his car seat so he could be closer to me. In all, they turned what is a nightmare for any parent into giving me renewed faith that there are still amazing and kind-hearted people out there. And [in] all the chaos I wasn’t even able to get anyone’s names and that is part of the reason why I am writing to you today, in the hope that they will get some sort of national recognition for what they did for a complete stranger who is three-year-old [boy]. Please let them know that he only needed three stitches, but the hospital said that he was lucky to [have] had [an emergency medical technician] right there, as it could’ve been a lot worse.”
Thank you and God bless,
Chris HenningerLambda Chi Alpha
