Where do we draw the line between disobedience and acting on immediate needs?
Mandy Cortes may have been frustrated when she picked up her son Anthony Ruelas from school.
The then 15-year-old kid just got his suspension.
As they were on their way out, Anthony tried to tell his mother what had happened.
Mandy stopped him, however.
She said the faculty had already told her what had happened.
Anthony allegedly walked out of class.
That’s when Anthony surrendered and said, “Okay, forget it.”
As a mother, however, Mandy felt that her son was upset.
She knew that there was something much more to the story than the school was letting on.
What she learned later made her lose faith in the school system.
During class, the students noticed one of their classmates gasping for breath.
The girl heaved and tried her best to get some air but was continuously failing to do so.
The girl was having an asthma attack.
The class brought this to the teacher’s attention.
The teacher, meanwhile, just shot an email to the school nurse and told everyone to stay seated and to remain calm.
Then, after a few more moments, the girl fell to the floor and lost consciousness.
Anthony listened to instinct and intervened.
He muttered an expletive phrase, chastising that they were just waiting.
Then, he scooped the girl in her arms and ran to the nurse’s office. The girl was gasping for air, and Anthony didn’t want the situation to get worse than it had to.
But when the matter was settled, the teacher decided to do something else.
The unidentified faculty member of Gateway Middle School in Killeen, Texas, endorsed Anthony for punishment instead.
Anthony was suspended for taking the girl to the nurse’s office.
According to Anthony, he was accused of breaking the rules as he didn’t stay put when asked to.
His mother further argued that while it was wrong for her son to use vulgar language, being suspended for walking out of class because he needed to help someone was unreasonable.
This worried Mandy because she thought the school was punishing good deeds instead of rewarding them, making students averse to helping those in need.
Anthony wasn’t fazed about the suspension.
He shared that the only thing he was worried about was his classmate. Eventually, the girl recovered and updated him, saying that she was okay.
The school even called Mandy to ask why her son didn’t come in for school.
She had to remind them that they suspended him.
While the school didn’t give a statement, John Craft, superintendent of Killeen Independent School District at that time, said they applaud “the efforts of students who act in good faith to assist others in times of need.”
And while she is proud of what her son did, Mandy considered pulling him out of the school entirely.
“He may not follow instructions all the time, but he does have a great heart,” Mandy told USA Today.
“I broke rules, but she needed help – like she needed help,” Anthony said.
What do you think?
Click the video below to learn more about Anthony’s story.
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