Instead of paddling past an individual floating upside down and unconscious in the Chicago River earlier this summer, 17 year-old Emmanuel Gonzalez decided to hold the man’s head and mouth above water and wait for rescuers. This act helped save the life of court reporter Andrew Pitts.

For his bravery, Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) Commissioner Mariyana T. Spyropoulos presented Gonzalez with a resolution during the MWRD Board meeting. “We wanted to honor Emmanuel’s bravery with this resolution,” said Commissioner Spyropoulos. “His quick-thinking actions saved a stranger’s life. He is an outstanding young man, he is a credit to humanity, and his family should be very proud of him.”

Gonzalez, 17, of Chicago, recently graduated from Kennedy High School and plans to attend the University of Illinois at Champaign in the fall. Gonzalez and his friend, Stephany Lopez, were kayaking for the first time on June 13 when they spotted Pitts floating face down. After he accepted the resolution, Gonzalez said, “I did what I had to do at that time. I knew something had to be done.”