When Others Were Afraid, This Good Samaritan Stepped Up to Help Ralph Yarl and Show Love to His Neighbor

When Ralph Paul Yarl, the 16-year-old from Kansas City who was shot after ringing the doorbell at the wrong house, was left unconscious, his neighbor James Lynch found him and said his Eagle Scout training instantly kicked in.

“No one deserves to lay there like that,” said Lynch, who checked Yarl’s pulse and tried to stanch the blood in a neighbor's driveway before paramedics arrived. “He hasn’t even begun to live his life yet. He didn’t deserve to get shot.”

Yarl was also helped by another neighbor who brought towels to help Lynch stem the bleeding and wait alongside them for the paramedics. According to North Kansas City Schools Superintendent Dan Clemens, Yarl attends Staley High School, loves science, takes mostly college-level courses, and plays in the school band.

Looking back on the incident, Lynch, a father of three, said he doesn’t think of himself as a hero.

“I didn’t do anything but hold a kid’s hand so he wouldn’t feel alone,”  Lynch said. “He had just gotten shot twice…That kid is tougher than I am.”

Read more about Lynch’s brave story on NBC News.

Question from the Editor: What are some other ways we can love and care for our neighbors?