Maxine Bennett Goebel, 80, calls the two women who she says saved her life on a frigid December evening “angels.” Now recovering from a broken leg and surgery, Goebel hopes to find the Good Samaritans to express her gratitude.
On December 3, Goebel fell while wheeling her garbage can to the curb outside her home in the Fieldcrest Crossing neighborhood. She was unable to get up or call for help. For what she thinks was about 20 minutes, Goebel lay on the cold, wet sidewalk as daylight started to fade, wearing only a lightweight vest over her clothes.
“I couldn’t move. I was starting to get really cold and wet,” Goebel recalled. “I was so scared no one would find me.”
The pair of women, who had made a wrong turn into the cul-de-sac, stopped their car when they saw Goebel. They rushed to her side, covered her with their coats to shield her from the chill, and called 911. One of the women was wearing an Owensboro High School sweatshirt, Goebel said.
“They stayed with me the whole time,” Goebel said. “They even helped get me onto the stretcher. I asked them what their names were and they said, ‘We’re just angels.’ I never did get their names.”
Goebel’s daughter, Adrienne Goebel Smith, shared the story on Facebook, asking for help identifying the women. The family also received security footage from a neighbor, showing the car and the moment the women came to Goebel’s aid.
Goebel suffered a broken femur near her hip socket, requiring surgery and a lengthy recovery process. Doctors feared she might develop hypothermia or pneumonia from her time in the cold, but the swift intervention of the two women likely prevented worse outcomes.
“These women saved her life,” Smith said. “She could have died from exposure if she had stayed out there.”
Goebel is now focused on recovery, relearning how to walk in transitional care. But her primary goal is finding the two women who helped her that day.
“I just want to thank them and let them know I’m OK,” Goebel said. “I would say they saved my life.”
Anyone with information about the two women is asked to contact Owensboro Times at [email protected] to facilitate a reunion.
