This story is part of the My Unsung Hero series, from the Hidden Brain team. It features stories of people whose kindness left a lasting impression on someone else.
More than 20 years ago, Virginia Squier chaperoned a group of middle school students on a tour of England. She brought along her daughter, Chambers, who was 8 years old at the time.
One evening, near the end of the visit, Squier, her daughter and the school group were on a platform in the London Underground getting ready to head to their next destination. It was 5 p.m. and the station was packed. Squier took hold of Chambers' hand and began counting her students. Just then, a train pulled up to the platform.
"Suddenly, my daughter let go of my hand, jumped on the train, and the doors began to close," Squier said. "As the train gathered speed, I ran alongside trying to force the door open by digging my fingers into the black rubber gasket. On the other side of the glass, I could see my daughter's panicked face."
The last thing she saw before the train pulled out of the station was Chambers crying and pounding her small fists against the glass. Behind her, a young man dressed in black leather with a spiked dog collar around his neck rose from his seat and started moving toward Chambers.
Terrified, Squier searched for an employee. The man she found was not a native English speaker, which made explaining her situation difficult.
"I was so shocked, too frightened to cry, too focused on getting this man to understand my plea for help, when suddenly one of my students appeared at my shoulder," Squier said. "'She's back,' she said. I turned and there she was ... my little girl."
The man on the train had witnessed what had happened and stepped in to help. He comforted Chambers and guided her off the train at the next stop. They then boarded another train headed back to her mother.
"My preconceived notion that he was frightening was destroyed," Squier said. "I remember looking up at him and then breaking down, sobbing, hugging my sobbing child. When I looked up again to thank him, he was gone."
For weeks after the incident, Squier would break into tears at the thought of how differently the scenario could have played out. She wishes she could find her unsung hero and express what a difference he made.
Chambers told Squier that she thought the man was from the United States, possibly from Indiana or Minnesota.
"As a result, I've entertained fantasies of taking out ads in newspapers or putting up billboards along highways so I could find him and thank him," Squier said.
Squier says the man didn't just save her daughter. He changed the way Squier moves through the world, and taught her to be a more accepting person.
"To this day, I hold his image in my head when I find myself judging someone based on their appearance. I hope he knows he rescued me from the worst day of my life."
My Unsung Hero is also a podcast — new episodes are released every Tuesday. To share the story of your unsung hero with the Hidden Brain team, record a voice memo on your phone and send it to myunsunghero@hiddenbrain.org.
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