Man who saved brother honored for his bravery

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In the early hours of March 2, 40-year-old Claude Delorme was awakened by his cousin who said smoke surrounded Delorme's brother's place.

"I figured that it might be a fire or something like that, so I ran over there and sure enough the house was on fire," he said.

What Delorme did next saved the lives of three people, including his brother. He entered the burning house where he woke two teenagers who were sleeping in the front room. After instructing them to leave, he made his way to the bedroom in the back of the house, and woke up his brother. As they were leaving they were caught in a flash of fire that catapulted them out the window. Remarkably, they landed on a deck outside, and uninjured, ran to safety moments before the house was engulfed in flames.

On Aug. 23 while attending the Metis Nation of Alberta's 75th anniversary gala dinner, Lt.-Gov. Lois Hole presented Delorme the medal of bravery.

She told him she was grateful that there were people like him in this world. "People who would give up your own safety for others, to think nothing of making sure that other people are rescued. You deserve the medal far beyond what the medal represents, because you have made a huge difference in your community. You saved three people, so how can we thank you? There aren't words enough to thank you. So to you, Claude, I thank you on behalf of everyone and on behalf of the people of Alberta for what you have done. You have made a huge difference in your community, in this province and in this country. Everyone of us can make a difference in our communities, so I congratulate you," she said.

"I feel proud of myself, because I saved some people and now there are three people walking around out there because of what I've done. It feels good. I'm still not sure where I will hang the medal, but I will definitely think about that after I get home," said Delorme.