"As I come across from Airport Road," Napier said, "probably about a mile and a half down the road on the left hand side of the median is where I ran into a car accident that involved two vehicles."
Napier's military training kicked in as he began to evaluate the situation. Using his truck as a barrier he blocked the oncoming traffic from the accident victims.
"I had stopped my vehicle short of the accident to make sure I could block off traffic, so that way it was safe for me to be able to exit out of my vehicle and assess the situation," Napier said.
After considering the situation and completing a safety check, Napier exited the cab of his truck and made his way to the first vehicle involved in the accident.
"I got up to the first vehicle and made sure that the other individual that was driving that vehicle was safe," Napier said. "There was also another Soldier on ground that was helping with the accident."
After checking on both passengers, Napier leaped into action, directing traffic until the authorities arrived on the scene. For Napier, there was no other decision than to stop his vehicle and provide support.
"I felt like it was the right thing to do. If it was my Family I would want somebody to stop and help take care of them as well."
Napier attributes the training he received in the Army, as well as the core values he follows as a non-commissioned officer in the Chaplain's Corps, to providing him with skills and compassion necessary to provide support during the accident.
"As a religious affairs NCO we maintain security management for the chaplain," Napier said. "When we're downrange. I'm CLS (Combat Life Saver) qualified, so I know how to do CPR. Most of the time I'm hanging out with medics when we're downrange, so I've got the training to be able to help people in a really bad situation."
U.S. Army MEDDAC Chaplain (Maj.) Kenneth Harris saluted the young noncommissioned officer for his act of selfless service and courage in a high pressure environment.
"So, his actions reflected to selfless service in the sense he took a lot of risk getting out of his vehicle, but then it shows an awful lot of thought in how he protected the scene, protected other people who couldn't protect themselves."
An anonymous first responder on the scene appreciated Napier's act of selfless service and reiterated his courage in an excerpt from an Interactive Customer Evaluation or ICE comment that was submitted to the hospital commander the same day.
The anonymous first responder said without Napeir's help this morning it could have been a lot worse than what it was. He went on to say he is assured Napier was not looking for accolades for his actions, but the first responder wanted to make it known the efforts this Soldier took did not go unnoticed and "his performance was outstanding!"
For Napier this act of service is just one way that he follows the Soldier's Creed and supports the Fort Stewart Community.
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