So I went to school with a boy named Allen. We were in JROTC together. Pretty good friends. I can remember the last time we talked. Allen was in the JROTC store room going through something, I don't recall what. I'd gone down to drop off a few pairs of drill team boots with him, and he'd convinced me to stay and talk. We talked that whole class period, and at the end we walked to one of the staircases and talked through lunch. We talked about the girl he was crushing on, how he was excited to join the military, we talked about my ex boyfriend, and how Allen thought he was stupid. Talked about everything. I wish that day four years ago hadn't been the last time I saw him. I wish so much that I could say we stayed in touch. Not all heroes have to be in the military. Shortly after our talk I changed schools. Allen was diagnosed with diabetes. I graduated. He was turned down from the military, because of his diabetes. I moved to Portland, he moved to Washington. I moved back to Salem, and he stayed gone. I can never go back and tell him how much I valued his friendship. He was such an amazing person, and I'll never forget him.

Man who died rescuing girl was homeless 'hero'

Allen Heck

KELSO, Wash. - The body of a man who disappeared after rescuing a 9-year-old girl from drowning in the Cowlitz River has been found, the Cowlitz County Sheriff's office says.

The body of 20-year-old Allen Heck was found 50 yards down river from where he was last seen.

Now his family has stepped forward to say Heck was "kind and loving," but homeless - living out of a Longview shelter. The county sheriff, meanwhile, calls him a "hero."

Authorities say Heck went into the water after seeing the child in distress Friday afternoon. He was last seen after he handed the girl to a group of people once he neared the shore; he never made it to shore.


Searchers comb the river for Heck in the hours after he disappeared.
The girl was unhurt.

"Mr. Heck did something no less than heroic," said Cowlitz County Sheriff's Capt. Mark Nelson. "He made the ultimate sacrifice, giving his life for that little girl."

Investigators say a group of people were swimming and enjoying the afternoon weather when the 9-year-old wandered out into the water. She ran into trouble when she got out into water about 8 to 12 feet deep in the river's main channel.

Heck saw the girl in trouble and ran for the water. He was able to grab her and hold her up above the water until someone could grab her. Then he went under, came back up and went under again. He did not resurface.

"Now and again, someone does something amazing in life and in doing so, gives up their own. That's a hero," Nelson said.

Heck's family, including mother and sister, say he was a kind, loving and funny young man, who was homeless. They say he did not know the young girl, but when he saw she was in trouble, he ran to help.

"He would give anybody the shirt off his back," said Heck's mother, Tara Kubacki. "He probably wasn't even thinking that he would be in danger when he went after that little girl. He probably just thought that he needed to help somebody."

The rescued girl originally was reported to be 3 years old, but officials later said she is actually 9.

Allen Heck's family says they'd like to talk with the girl and her family because they don't want the 9-year-old to blame herself for what happened. They firmly believe that this was a tragic accident.

Heck's body was found during a joint search involving a Coast Guard helicopter, the Cowlitz County dive team, fire and rescue teams and Kelso police.



I can't believe it took four months for me to hear about this. I don't watch or listen to the news, so I missed it. My mom remembers hearing about it, and I wish she'd mentioned it. How would she have known to though? Allen lived in Washington, not Oregon. She couldn't know that he was someone I went to school with. She didn't know me and him dated freshman year. How could she know? I know nobody reading this will really care, and that hurts worse. Allen was an amazing person, you just had to talk to him to know. He had goals. He had dreams. He was talkative. The first time we met I was in foster care. He talked to me, and I told him everything. He knew everything I'd gone through. When I broke into tears that day after school, while waiting for my foster mom who was half hour late, he just wrapped me in his arms and let me cry. I'll never forget that feeling. I remember when I went to his house one day after school, though I wasn't supposed to. When it came time to leave, he walked me the mile home. He let my foster mom scream at him. He had to talk to the police there, because I'd been reported as a run away. When most people would have walked away at that point, he didn't.
Those are things I'll never be able to forget, as long as I live. While I'm sitting here, thinking back to high school, I'm realizing how many people were important then, that I don't even know where are now. I wish I'd stayed in touch with all of them. I wish I could have gone to Allen's funeral.
I'm so glad the last words I said to him were "I'll always love you." I wouldn't take that back for the world.
Rest in peace Allen. I miss you more than words can express.