From left, longtime Lisbon resident Missy Ieropoli stands next to her lifesaver, lifelong Lisbon resident MacKenzie Lewis, and Lisbon Mayor Peter Wilson during Tuesday’s village council meeting. Lewis is holding the proclamation from Lisbon Mayor Peter Wilson and Lisbon Village Council recognizing her heroic act when she pulled Ieropoli from a fiery crash last month. (Photo by Mary Ann Greier)

LISBON — Lisbon resident MacKenzie Lewis wasn’t seeking recognition when she pulled fellow resident Missy Ieropoli from a burning vehicle April 27 — she saw someone in trouble and acted.

That’s the definition of a hero.

Ieropoli and her family, Lisbon Mayor Peter Wilson and members of village council all said so Tuesday, with Lewis the recipient of a meaningful hug, lots of gratitude and a proclamation recognizing her actions as heroic.

“I am just so thankful for MacKenzie and what she did,” Ieropoli said.

The crash occurred at 4:57 p.m. on Monday in Lisbon when a Ford F-550 driven by Michael Alan Stouffer of Salem was attempting to turn left from South Lincoln Avenue onto West Lincoln Way and pulled out in front of Ieropoli’s eastbound Toyota Highlander, causing her vehicle to strike the work truck. Both vehicles immediately caught fire.

“I panicked,” Ieropoli said, adding that she just froze.

Lewis was coming down the hill on Thomas Road on her way to a softball game — she helps coach U10 softball — and saw the crash.

She didn’t think about what to do, she just did it, pulling Ieropoli from the Highlander and setting her on the ground. Then she ran to the passenger side, thinking Ieropoli might have had her dog with her, and pulled the door open. She could feel the heat on her face. She didn’t find a dog, but managed to grab Ieropoli’s phone and purse.

“She truly saved my life. She is a hero,” Ieropoli said.

In talking about how both vehicles quickly went up in flames, Lewis said she thought that only happened in movies. The other driver, who was cited for failure to yield right-of-way, and his passenger both escaped injury. Ieropoli was shook up and checked out by an ambulance on scene, but wasn’t transported.

Bringing both Lewis and Ieropoli to the front of the council chambers to face the audience, Wilson thanked Lewis for what he described as “her selfless act of courage.”

“In that moment of crisis, MacKenzie Lewis demonstrated exceptional selflessness by acting with unwavering resolve to pull an individual from a burning vehicle,” Wilson read from the proclamation. “It is fitting that we recognize such a courageous action embodying the highest caliber of compassion, civil responsibility, and bravery.”

Wilson said she didn’t understand why she was being recognized, telling him she just did what anyone else would have done.

Wilson commented that’s not always the case. Not everyone would do what she did.

Lewis was presented the proclamation as a keepsake.

mgreier@mojonews.com