In Search of Jesus Garcia

Sometimes the fate of an entire community hinges on the split-second decision of one person; such is the case with this loving tribute to Jesus Garcia, a genuine hero who risked death to save the people he loved. It's an inspiring story, very much like the firefighters in New York who trudged into the World Trade Center towers in an effort to save lives. No one has yet written the definitive st ory of such courage, because too much effort has been made to include every one and thus loses the impact of a single focus. As is often said; the death of one person is a tragedy, the death of one thousand is a statistic. In this case, Dedera's focus is on the courage of one person who made an instant decision to risk his own life to save the lives of hundreds. Garcia took the risk and died, but hundreds lived because of his courage. In brief, rather than flee a train with a burning boxcar loaded with dynamite that he couldn't extinguish, he chose to drive the train out of town. He almost succeeded. A hundred yards or so further he could have jumped and let the unmanned locomotive haul the burning car into open countryside. Dedera does a good job describing the mining town and its people without turning it into a "thumbsucker", i.e. a maudlin story speculating on what Garcia or others might have thought in the moments before they died. When the story is good, facts are enough. It makes this a brief book, well illustrated with pictures; an easy but awesome read. How many others possess such courage? Who knows. The events of Sept. 11, 2001, are packed with similar courage. Dedera eloquently offers an example of what it means to think of others instead one's personal safety in a story that will inspire everyone. We're all better that some people have such courage, and we're all fortunate that Dedera had the time, interest and skill to search for and write the story of Jesus Garcia. Often, when we see the monuments to heroes, we wonder what a hero did to become a hero. This is an example, well told and deserving to be well remembered.