8/10/2019 A Jogger Saved Mike Wises Life. Six Years Later, The Columnist Got to Repay Him.

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A jogger saved Mike Wises life. Six years later,

the columnist got to repay him.

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The Washington Post's Mike Wise returns to the canal where he almost drowned with

the man who saved him. (Gillian Brockell and Jorge RibasThe Washington Post!

By Mike WiseDecember 5 at 6:00 AM

Before their big day began, I kept telling myself the same thing, oer and oer!Its not

about you, its about them. Its their moment. You need to be in control of your words

and emotions at all times. You cant lose it.

We had assembled before abo"t #5 of their closest family and friends in front of the

$aana%themed back room of the historic resta"rant &ith its erdant tropical garden! 'n

the (at"rday before )abor Day in the *ocon"t +roe neighborhood of Miami, it &as the

radiant yo"ng bride, the handsome yo"ng groom &ith the et%black thatch and beard and

- me, the middle%aged bald minister&ho &o"ld marry them!

'h, and the co"ple.s cat/first child stood sentry in the backgro"nd in the form of an %

by%10 framed pict"re, "nofficially presiding oer the ceremony!

2Hi, Sal Cat, I said, addressing the photo in the welcome.

Alexandra Marie Squitieri and Jason Daniel Coates laughed. I the! were ner"ous,the! didn#t show it. $ext to me, in point o act, the! were remar%a&l! calm. 'romm! irst words, I was araid I would &egin cr!ing.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/magazine/a-jogger-saved-mike-wises-life-six-years-later-the-columnist-got-to-repay-him/2014/11/19/1202b71a-6533-11e4-836c-83bc4f26eb67_story.html?hpid=z1http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/magazine/a-jogger-saved-mike-wises-life-six-years-later-the-columnist-got-to-repay-him/2014/11/19/1202b71a-6533-11e4-836c-83bc4f26eb67_story.html?hpid=z1http://www.washingtonpost.com/people/mike-wisehttp://a4166fc5c8de2e956be1-35bf222e249f267a2d3dc4447ed58798.r20.cf3.rackcdn.com/washingtonpost.jpghttp://www.washingtonpost.com/people/mike-wisehttp://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/magazine/a-jogger-saved-mike-wises-life-six-years-later-the-columnist-got-to-repay-him/2014/11/19/1202b71a-6533-11e4-836c-83bc4f26eb67_story.html?hpid=z1http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/magazine/a-jogger-saved-mike-wises-life-six-years-later-the-columnist-got-to-repay-him/2014/11/19/1202b71a-6533-11e4-836c-83bc4f26eb67_story.html?hpid=z1

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2(hen Jason and Alex irst as%ed me to perorm their wedding, m! initial thoughtwas, m! wie is not going to &elie"e I get to &e a minister or a da!, I &egan. )M!second thought was how honored I was to &e as%ed.

2*he reason is simple+ (ithout Jason, I am not here toda!. eore I tell !ou thestor! o how the! came into each other#s li"es, let me tell !ou the stor! o how Jasoncame into mine.

(ports col"mnist Mike Wise, right, &as resc"ed by 3ason *oates after he fell thro"gh the ice on the *4amp'

*anal &hile trying to sae his dog, )ooly! Andr7 *h"ng/8or 9he Washington ost;

On a cold January night in 2008 I was in the middle o the ro-eno"erC/amp01 Canal, less than a quartermile south o Chain ridge , una&le to get out.

(hile we were 2ogging, m! golden 3a&, 3ool!, went out onto the ice and ellthrough, and I went in ater her. Ater se"eral minutes I managed to put m! armunder her a&domen and 2er% her up onto a solid piece o ice. ut I couldn#t touch

&ottom, and &! then I could &arel! mo"e. M! &od! was shutting down.

'"t of no&here, as I screamed for help, a fig"re appeared! $e lo&ered his body into the

free

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were all right. 'ree-ing, out o &reath, I as%ed him his name and where he wor%ed.2Jason. Jason Coates, he said. )I#m in law school at 4(. And he too% o again 5li%e some superhero who 2ust shows up when people are in dire need.

I did cho%e up once as I told that stor!. It happened when I loo%ed up and caughtm! wie#s smile. I would ne"er ha"e met Christina. (e wouldn#t ha"e had 1li"er,

who is 6 !ears old and was sitting in her lap. And there wouldn#t ha"e &een anotherchild on the wa! i Jason hadn#t pulled me rom the canal.

In =00, Mike Wise &as min"tes from free

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righteningl! eas! or a heathen li%e me.

I illed out a orm or the 9ni"ersal 3ie Church, and within da!s, m! :;< ee camewith an oicial minister card.

*he morning o the wedding, I whipped out m! card &eore I signed the marriage

certiicate, eeling 5 i I#m &eing honest 5 li%e I could &e a man o 4od.'or, li%e, a da!.

3ason *oates &as ogging &hen he sa& Mike Wise in the icy &ater! Andr7 *h"ng/8or 9he Washington ost;

Just dont lose it. Dont cry.Ater I told o Jason#s courageous moment, Inoticed some in the audience co"ering their mouths. I could tell the! had not reador %nown a&out the original stor! I had written in the(ashington =ostMaga-ine a&out it. *wo women were weeping. I inall! turned to the &ride+

2So, Alex, not that I ha"e to tell !ou, &ut !ou are marr!ing a reallie hero.

2And, Jason, not that I ha"e to tell !ou, &ut !ou are marr!ing someone equall! goodat loo%ing out or others. I %now this &ecause !ou told me !oursel.

A couple o months &eore, I had as%ed Jason and Alex to write letters to oneanother. ut instead o gi"ing them to each other, I as%ed the! gi"e them onl! to meso I could get a &etter sense o their relationship. I promised I would not em&arrassthem.

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9hey had met thro"gh m"t"al friends! After their first date > a day at the ?ational @oo

> they ended "p at the 8irehook Bakery in *leeland ark, &here 3ason tho"ght he

&o"ld sho& off his ability to deo"r pastries! $e gorged himself! *rashing from his

s"gar high, he fell asleep on the train ride back home!

I loo%ed out at the attendees around their ta&les and said, )I li%e to imagine Alexloo%ing at him, passed out on the Metro next to her in that moment, thin%ing, Yep,hes a keeper.

More laughter. *he humor was good camoulage. I was conident I#d ma%e itthrough the ceremon!.

*here was the stor! o Jason indulging Alex#s spontaneit!, going out in the galeorce winds and rain o Hurricane Irene and her inding out, onl! ater the!returned sopping wet rom head to toe+ Jason reall! hates getting wet 5 a nota&le

iron!, gi"en how Jason and I met.

*he pro&lem with heroes is, o course, the!#re sometimes so good at sa"inge"er!&od! else the! orget to do little things or themsel"es.

3i%e get real urniture, go to the dentist and set up a retirement account, all owhich Alex encouraged Jason to do. In the letter he wrote Alex, !ou could tell helo"ed the wa! she &alanced her childli%e exu&erance or lie with her personalresponsi&ilit!.

2>ou ha"e suggested a ew times that, when we ha"e a &igger place to li"e, weshould get a !oung cat to %eep Sal compan!, Jason wrote. )(hen I told !ou that Iwas worried that a !ounger cat might ta%e our attention awa! rom Sal, !ou told methat our hearts would expand to lo"e the new cat 2ust as much as we lo"e Sal. Iagree with that.

2eing with !ou alwa!s ma%es me eel at home, Jason wrote Alex. )eing with !ouand Sal ma%es me eel li%e I am exactl! where I &elong.

Alex was less c!nical a&out the world and more open to lie experiences &ecause o

Jason, she wrote. She is reall! loo%ing orward to &eing his lie partner or man!reasons, &ut )most o all so I can hang out in m! pa2amas with !ou and watchreruns o 8*he 1ice.#

9he o&s, the echange of rings and the kiss, after I prono"nced them man and &ife,

&ent by so "ickly! 9he entire ceremony lasted less than =0 min"tes!

2?"en i Jason weren#t m! son, I#d &e proud o him and who he is, Jason ather#s

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said to me ater the ceremon!. I understood entirel!.

(i years after 3ason p"lled Mike to safety, Mike officiated at his &edding ceremony! Andr7 *h"ng/8or 9he

Washington ost;

When everybody was mingling inside,I too% a moment or m!sel and wal%edinto the ront o the restaurant, outside the tropical garden. As I had when Jason

ran &ac% to 4eorgetown that night in Januar! ater pulling me out, I let go ohea"ing so&s 5 the so&s o a man who %new how close he came to ne"er seeing this&eautiul da! 5 and all those that had come &eore it.

Mike Wise is a sports col"mnist for 9he Washington ost! 9o comment on this story, e%

mail &pmaga

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