On Thursday I handed a 16 year-old student from Solihull College the ‘Outstanding Young Citizen Award’ after he saved a man’s life following a stabbing.
Nasim Ahmed was recognised for his heroics at my Outstanding Citizens Awards, an evening which recognises remarkable individuals and groups from across the region for acts of bravery, courage, selflessness and compassion.
Nasim, who is also an Army Cadet, was volunteering at a charity dinner in Digbeth, Birmingham, when he was alerted to an attack in the car park. The victim had been horrifically stabbed after confronting a car thief.
Nasim jumped into action, grabbing a medical kit from the venue and rushed to the victims’ side.
Applying pressure to stem the flow of bleeding, the Public Services student tended to two 6-inch deep knife wounds.
Nasim worked at speed until the ambulance arrived, where Paramedics drove the victim to hospital for emergency treatment. Thanks to Nasim’s bravery and compassion the victim made a full recovery.
It is for this act of courage that I awarded Nasim with the Outstanding Young Citizens Award.
Nasim is a fantastic role model for other young people and is an example to us all. His actions showed bravery beyond his years and I am delighted that he is the recipient of this award.
Without his intervention, the story may have been very different.
The rise in knife crime is well documented, but what isn’t documented are the stories of inspirational acts which make the West Midlands a better place.
All too often we hear about the bad in society, the Outstanding Citizens Awards are an evening that celebrate the good.
Nasim was not the only local hero to be given their moment in the spotlight. The Outstanding Citizens Awards saw 9 other individuals and groups receive the recognition they deserve.
My awards are a chance for me to say ‘thank you’ on behalf of the community to those people who work to make the West Midlands a better place and they allow us to show our appreciation to those unsung heroes who are worthy of special recognition.
