9-Year-Old Girl Stops Car from Crashing, Saves Mom

Her quick thinking has many calling her a hero

A 9-year-old girl in New Lenox is being called a hero for saving her mother's life by stopping their speeding car from crashing.

"At one point she went through a stop light and then at another point she was going over 70 miles per hour, and on the secondary road," said Alex Sheridan about the incident that happened a week earlier.

Sheridan's mother Jennifer went into diabetic shock while driving them home from a cousin's basketball game and lost control of their vehicle.

"I guess I went off the road and down through a little ditch and we were kind of heading towards trees and a sign and a utility pole," said Sheridan's mom Jennifer, who was phasing in and out of consciousness during the shock.

The vehicle was about to hit a tree when Sheridan reached over and turned off the key to stop the car. Then she continued to hold the key to prevent her mother from starting the car before help arrived.

When her father called to check on their delay, Sheridan told him what had happened and that they were lost. She then quickly snapped a picture of "Wood's Auto Body" and sent it to her dad, who was able to determine they were on Laraway Road in Frankfort.

Fortunately, both mom and daughter were OK. Jennifer is now wearing a special insulin pump to help prevent her going back into shock. She is grateful for her daughter's quick thinking.

"She saved her mom, she saved herself, she's an amazing kid," Jennifer said.

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