Angels Among Us

Don, Tim and Jim were college students from the Midwestern United States and they all attended the same university in Connecticut.

It was Christmas break time, 1983, and they were all looking forward to going home for the holidays. One came from Fort Wayne, Indiana while the other two were from Chicago, Illinois.

As they traveled by automobile on their way home they finally reached Indiana. They were now only two hours from Don’s home in Fort Wayne.

The weather outside was bone-chilling cold and the ground was covered with heavy snow from a recent blizzard. The radio station they were listening to on the car radio was repeatedly giving weather updates and warnings advising travelers not to drive.

The wind chill factor had reached a record-setting 80 degrees below zero! To get stuck outside in this weather would be life-threatening.

Travel was slow but they finally arrived safely at Don’s home in Fort Wayne. Because of the severe weather, Don’s parents invited Tim and Jim to spend the night before proceeding on to their own homes in Chicago.

They wanted the boys to wait until the weather improved and it was safe to drive again, but these college students were anxious to get home for the holidays to their families in Chicago. After all, it was Christmas Eve and they had only four more hours of driving to reach their destination.

They sincerely thanked Don’s parents for their generous offer but decided to brave the cold and snow and head home.

After leaving Don’s house, Tim and Jim continued on their way home. They had traveled approximately 30 minutes and had finally reached the access road that would lead them to the toll expressway.

Tim’s automobile had done well in the bitter cold, but now it was beginning to sputter and lose power. The access road they were traveling was eleven miles long and it had been built along a hillside. It was a higher road then the rest. They were able to look out the car windows and see the many roads below, but they saw no other cars traveling that night. There were no houses within miles.

They assumed that other travelers had heeded the weather warnings and made the smart choice to not travel on such a dangerous night.

Tim’s automobile continued to lose more and more power - and then with one final sputter and moan, the engine completely stopped. They were stuck in the middle of nowhere on the frozen road.

Soon the inside of the car became freezing cold. No other cars were anywhere to be seen. To leave the vehicle and attempt to walk to safety would likely mean death. No one could survive more than a couple of minutes outside in these record cold temperatures. Their feet were getting so cold and their bodies were becoming numb.

They didn’t know what to do, so in desperation, Tim began to pray. “Dear God, You are the only one who can help us now. Please help us dear God, please help us!”

Within moments, from out of nowhere, lights appeared shining brightly through their windows. How was this possible? They hadn’t seen anyone coming and they had been watching closely for any sign of life at all. A big, strong-looking man approached their car and knocked on the window. “Need a tow fellas?” he asked.

Excitedly and with a sense of great relief the two boys climbed into the warm cab of the tow truck. From the cab the boys used the driver’s truck phone and telephoned Don’s house. They would be spending the night after all! However, they would need some additional money to pay the driver who had rescued them. Don’s parents said they would be happy to help.

The tow-truck driver drove through Fort Wayne and back into the neighborhood where Don lived. They thanked the driver for rescuing them and asked him to wait just a moment while they went inside to borrow the money to pay him.

They jumped out of the cab and ran into Don’s house. Don handed them the money they had asked to borrow and they hurried back outside, grateful to pay the driver, but the tow truck was gone!

Don and his parents joined them outside, also wanting to thank the driver. The boy’s car was there, but there was no sign of the tow truck or its driver, nor was there any sign of a tow truck having ever been down that road.

Neither Don nor his family had heard any sound when they had arrived, even though they had been listening for them.

There were no tire tracks anywhere on the snow-covered road. There was no tow bill, no tow truck driver, no farewell, and no taillights that could be seen off in the distance. There was no evidence anywhere that any vehicle had even been down that road!