INDIAN TRAIL, N.C. — Crossing guard Jerome Sutton has been an unsung hero for decades, guiding students safely to class at Sun Valley Middle School.
Sutton stepped in front of a fast-moving car Thursday to protect students at the intersection on Wesley Chapel Road. No one was injured in the incident.
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"There was a black SUV coming at a high rate of speed," parent Dolores Grima said. “I don't know if they saw him with his hand up, but he immediately went in front of the two kids that were crossing in the crosswalk and put himself out there first, without even thinking twice."
Sutton has been on the job for 27 years, rain or shine, and tries his best not to miss a day to keep the students safe.
"I try to take all my vacation when school is out,” Sutton said. “If I'm out, it's an emergency, because I always feel like, ‘What if something happens when I'm not there?’"
Fortunately, Sutton was at the crosswalk Thursday morning.
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"It was just natural instinct, you know, of doing it so long, making sure the kids are safe," Sutton said.
He was recently named one of the best crossing guards in the country.
Indian Trail town officials honored Sutton two years ago by naming a day after him.
"I love people,” Sutton said. “I'm a people person, and I just want to make sure the kids are safe."