When terrorists went on a stabbing spree in several several pubs and bars in London last month leaving people running for their lives, Bay Ridge resident Mark Kindschuh, 19, and jumped into action saving one of those critically wounded.
And for his courageous act of bravery, Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams named Kindschuh as Brooklyn’s “Hero of the Month” for June. Kindschuh received the honor yesterday along with several other honorees at Brooklyn Borough Hall.
“Mark’s selfless act in the face of sheer terror was incredibly brave,” said Adams, a retired NYPD Officer. “Running into the line of danger when everyone else hid for their lives truly demonstrated how committed Mark is to serving others, even when his own life is on the line.”
The event leading up to Kindschuh’s brave action unfolded in the early morning hours of Sunday, June 4, when three terrorists in a van mowed down pedestrians on the London Bridge, and then exited the vehicle to go on a stabbing spree London’s Borough Market, ultimately killing seven people and critically wounding more than 20.
At the time, Kindschuh, a college student, was inside the Wheatsheaf Pub in Borough Market enjoying the evening with his classmates when terrorists stormed into the bar stabbing all within arms length. Instead of running out of the bar for safety, Kindschuh stayed inside and saw a man at the front of the bar bleeding profusely.
Kindschuh searched for his wound at the back of his head and wrapped his belt around the man to slow the bleeding. He was the only person who was trying to save the man’s life while everyone else was hiding in the back of the bar. Eventually, after more terrorists were shot by police outside the bar, emergency services arrived and took the injured man to the hospital.
“I appreciate this honor, though I maintain that I do not consider myself a hero in this situation,” said Kindschuh. “The SWAT team members are the real heroes as they saved so many lives and prevented many more potential casualties.”
Also receiving “Heroes of the Month” awards were New York City Police Department (NYPD) Officer Numael Amador, whose anonymous tip while off duty led to an arrest in the case of the violent attack on Bedford-Stuyvesant cyclist Domingo Diego-Tapia; animal activist Anne Levin, who saved an injured cat huddled on the side of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway (BQE), and high schooler Alina Estrella, who started a community campaign to revitalize Rainbow Playground in Sunset Park.
Amador, who was announced as Brooklyn’s “Hero of the Month” for July, received the award for cracking the case of the perpetrator who attacked 38-year-old Domingo Diego-Tapia, a Mexican immigrant who works at a fruit stand on Church Avenue.
Diego-Tapia was bicycling home to his family when the Bedford-Stuyvesant father of two was sucker punched off his bicycle by an attacker on the corner of Fulton and Albany streets. Diego-Tapia fell and fractured his skull, and he remains in a coma at NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County in East Flatbush.
Adams held a community vigil in his honor on Tuesday, June 20 to spread the word about the attack. Only two days later, Amador, a member of the NYPD’s Strategic Response Group, who used to work at the 81st Precinct, saw the media coverage of what happened to Diego-Tapia and the security video that was played on TV of him getting sucker-punched. He recognized the footage of the perpetrator from working in the precinct, and noticed the man as he was working out at a gym in the borough. He reported the man to the NYPD, who was promptly arrested thereafter.
Estrella is a sophomore at James Madison High School, who plays on their girls’ varsity basketball team and practices at Rainbow Playground in Sunset Park. Realizing that the court needed new paint and that the park had not been maintained in quite some time, she decided to start a community restoration project with the hope that it would make a difference to all the other children who use the playground.
Estrella started a GoFundMe page that raised funds for paint, a banner, t-shirts, and food for volunteers. By word of mouth, she was able to rally together some longtime residents of Sunset Park, in addition to 10 former residents who came back to help, to fix up the park on Saturday, April 29. With a freshly painted court, Estrella is now looking for other community projects to help kickstart in the neighborhood.
Adams recognized Levin as Brooklyn’s “Hero of the Month” for May. On the morning of Monday, March 27, Kevin Wolff initially spotted a kitten on the side of the BQE underneath the Brooklyn Heights Promenade while on his way to work. He posted a message on Facebook, where a friend of Levin learned about the news and texted her information.
Levin and her friend loaded up their car and headed for the BQE, where she slowly approached the cat and grabbed her quickly so she couldn’t run off and injure herself. The cat was drenched, matted, and covered in debris. Levin and her friend brought the cat to Park Slope Veterinary Center where the cat had to have its tail amputated. She nicknamed the cat Suzy BQE, and raised money for her surgery costs online.
Levin, who is president of the Brooklyn Bridge Animal Welfare Coalition and founder of the Brooklyn Cat Café, took the cat under her care to ensure she was alright to be adopted by a foster family.
