MUSKEGON HEIGHTS, Mich. — A Muskegon County family found the best of humanity during their worst moment over the weekend, when a couple stopped to help after a car crash.
“Just a couple of things a little different, and who knows which of us would be here?” said Nate Ayers, who lives in Fruitport Township with his wife, Kathleen, and their two children.
On Sunday, around 1:30 a.m., the family of four was on their way home from a holiday party when a wrong-way driver hit their car.
It happened on Seeway Drive near Hoyt Street.
“I noticed a set of headlights on the other side of the road, the opposite direction on Seeway,” recalled Nate. “I didn’t think anything of it, and then I noticed that they were coming towards us. At that point, instinct kind of kicks in because somethings wrong… I just slammed on the breaks and tried to swerve so they didn’t hit us head on.”
Nate says the impact of the collision ripped the front of their car off. The family was not hurt besides a few cuts and scratches.
As he and Kathleen tried to deal with the damage and manage their kids, two strangers walked up and began to offer help.
“We were on the side of the road and next thing I know, they were right there,” said Kathleen. “I just remember her rocking Gwen while I had Gideon. [She kept] her distracted and answered his questions.”
A simple gesture, the Ayers said it provided them much needed support, which is why they wanted to find the couple and extend their appreciation again.
On Monday, Kathleen posted a brief description of the couple in a community group on Facebook with the hopes that someone knew the pair.
“For something so wonderful in a bad time, I just needed to say thank you,” said Kathleen.
Fifteen minutes later, she got an answer when one of Catherine Kloska and David Sumner’s friends tagged them in the post.
“I really think it’s something that anybody, I would think most people would stop and help out,” said Sumner.
The Norton Shores couple was on their way home from a New Year’s Eve party.
In an interview with FOX 17, they said they do not think of their actions as extraordinary, but instead the right thing to do.
“I’ve been in an accident before with my own daughter and I know that feeling inside - you’re scared, you’re shaking, you’re nervous, you’re trying to concentrate and think of things, so if someone could help me when that situation happened, I’m going to help somebody else out too,” said Kloska.
During a time in which that may not always happen though, the Ayers hope their story encourages more people to be that lending hand.
“[We’re] just very appreciative and grateful,” said Kathleen.
The crash remains under investigation by the Muskegon Heights Police Department.
A copy of the police report provided to FOX 17 revealed there was no alcohol in the system of the wrong-way driver, but they are awaiting blood test results to see if he was under the influence of any drugs.
Kathleen noted that the “SOS” feature on her iPhone alerted police and her emergency contacts as soon as the crash happened.
She encourages people to set the tool up.
For more information, click here.
