Matt had been eager to oblige when the flight attendant asked if he’d switch seats to be in an exit aisle. He had always been a nice, polite person even as a kid, the type teachers and coaches liked and appreciated as a leader. Other kids liked him too, because he was kind and calm and amiable. It didn’t hurt that he was handsome, astonishingly so as he grew into a man. He folded his 6’4” athletic build into the window seat and settled in for the short flight from Raleigh to New York City.

When the plane began to lose altitude shortly after it had reached cruising, Matt was aware but stifled alarm. Looking out the window he saw a small fire on the opposite wing. The pilot did his best to land the plane carefully, in a corn field in northern Virginia, amid screams of terror from many of the passengers. Though the plane was soon engulfed in flames, Matt guided and carried passenger after passenger out to safety, as they welcomed the distant sound of a fire engine racing to the scene.