After unfortunate fate brought Hesbeidy Rodriguez and Geoffrey Bennett together last month at a crashscene along the I-80 West and the I-480 northbound on-ramp, Rodriguez and the man who saved her life met for the second time.
34-year-old Rodriguez and her family were having car trouble on the snowy December 3rd and were forced to pull over along the on-ramp. She and her husband called their friend, a mechanic, 28-year-old Miguel Ramirez for help.
Shortly after, Ramirez and his family pulled up behind Rodriguez's Chryster Pacifica to help. Unable to move Rodriguez's car, Ramirez offered to drive Rodriguez's family home.
But as Rodriguez and Ramirez stood between the disabled Pacifica, after transporting Rodriguez's kids into Ramirez's car, a driver of a northbound Dodge Durango lost control of the vehicle and struck both of them.
Ramirez had severe injuries to both of his legs, which had to be amputated, while Rodriguez had a broken pelvis and had severe injuries to one leg, which was amputated at the hospital.
For weeks, Rodriguez laid in a hospital bed, unconscious for days and undergoing numerous surgeries.
During that time, 25-year-old Geoffrey Bennett thought about Rodriguez and Ramirez daily.
Bennett was driving home from work that day when he encountered the accident. He quickly got out to help and found Rodriguez and Ramirez laying on the ground, with their limbs nearby.
With no materials other than the clothes on his back, Bennett took his belt off and fastened it onto Rodriguez's leg to stop the bleeding, which essentially saved her life.
"I've had nightmares about it. I replay that day over and over," says Bennett.
With flowers in hand, Bennett drove to Rodriguez's home Wednesday night to get a personal update on her health.
"Thank you so much. There's no price for what you did," Rodriguez told Bennett. "Because you stopped to help, I can now spend more time with my kids."
"I would do it again and again," an emotional Bennett responded.
