Vons thanks teen who attended to injured store employee

A local teen, whose skateboarding helmet was stolen while he came to the aid of an injured Vons employee, got a special thank-you on Monday that included a gift card to replace that helmet.

Sage Prescott was boarding near Memorial Park on Feb. 11 when he saw Andy Spence, son of La Cañada Flintridge City Councilman Dave Spence, lying injured on Foothill Boulevard after being hit by a pickup truck.

Spence was walking home from work just after 5 p.m. when the truck’s driver turned from La Cañada Boulevard to go westbound on Foothill, colliding with Spence and running over his legs.

Spence suffered a shattered left leg, fractured pelvis and severe bruising on his right leg, said his father, and remains in recovery at Huntington Hospital after several surgeries.

Sgt. Mark Slater of the Crescenta Valley Sheriff’s Station said the truck’s driver was at fault in the collision and admitted to investigators he had been blinded by the setting sun and couldn’t see Spence crossing.

In dashing over to the injured Spence and waiting with him until paramedics arrived, 13-year-old Sage left his helmet and skateboard on the sidewalk near the park.

When the he returned to the parkway, the La Cañada High School 7/8 student couldn’t find his helmet.

After reading about the teen’s efforts in the Valley Sun, executives at Vons corporate headquarters in Arcadia contacted the paper to reach out to the youth.

On Monday, La Cañada Vons Store Manager Joe Landon presented Sage with a $50 American Express gift card to replace his skateboarding helmet.

“Sage went out of his way to help somebody. We’re just trying to recognize a good deed,” Landon said.

For Sage, the gift was reassurance that doing the right thing is the best thing.

“Doing good things pays back eventually, even if something bad seems to come from it. Other people will notice and it will be repaid to you in some way,” he said.