Posted on 09/05/2020 12:23:58 PM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin
LAKE GEORGE - It was a choppy afternoon on the lake and Jimmy MacDonald from Albany was paddling in a kayak.
As Jimmy tells it, he drifted away from his wife and stepkids because he was taking pictures with his new smartphone "and not really paying attention."
As he tried to make his way back, the water got choppier and he paddled harder before he tipped over and lost his paddle.
He was in about 30 feet of water, his ill-fitting life jacket coming up over his head and he was holding onto the kayak with one hand and his new $1,400 smartphone with the other.
He says people---other kayers and canoeists---were passing by in the distance, but the former amateur boxer's pride wouldn't let him scream for help.
So for several exhausting minutes he kept trying to right the kayak.
"That's when I said, 'Alright, I think I might die today. I think this might be it.'" I prayed to my lord and savior Jesus Christ for help."
Greg Barrett is a captain for Tiki Tours.
"A lot of things aligned that day," Barrett said.
He typically pilots partiers, but not on this day.
At first Barrett saw Jimmy's paddle and then one of his passengers said they heard a call for help.
'So as soon as I turned the boat towards him, I realized his life preserver had been in the upper portion of his head and he was, he was hanging on for dear life."
They got to him, a deckhand and the passengers pulled him on board.
And here's where it gets interesting: Jimmy is a drug counselor and a recovering addict.
MacDonald laiughed about it, "How funny is it that I've been sober for seven years and I get saved by a tiki bar?"
And not just any tiki bar---it was a bar full of priests and seminarians from the Paulist Fathers, a Catholic retreat on the lake.
Jimmy prayed for help from above and it arrived in the form of men of the cloth on a floating bar.
The priests and seminarians who were on board have no doubt that a higher power played a role in them being there exactly when Jimmy needed them.
"We're missionaries," said Chris Malano, a second-year seminarian. "For us, that day, that was our mission to be present and to help someone in need."
That someone in need says he's committed to continuing to help others drowning in addiction.
"I just take that as a sign from God that he's got me here for a real reason," said MacDonald.
...yes, indeed..... was born and raised not far from Lake George....even in the summer the water was cold as ice...we really could not enjoy swimming in it for the cold...the winters up in that part of New York were really harsh...at least in the 1950s when we lived up there...summers were beautiful; winters were miserable...
...and the paddle doesn't have all of his contacts, his photos, his credit cards, his passwords, his Words with Friends, and everything else that makes up his life on it!
Well, next time there might not be a tiki boat around. I guess he can cuddle up with his water logged phone in his kayak for the night.
I won’t even go out on the water unless I see a Tiki bar full of priests on the lake! :)
My thoughts exactly.
My thoughts exactly.
My dad’s family is from the Hudson Falls/Glens Falls area.
I spent a few summers at Lake George as a kid in the ‘60’s.
You are right about the water always being cold.
Canoeing was fun unless you turned it over.
“Was the cell phone ok? That’s what is important to know.”
LOL! $1,400.00 for a PHONE? My first CAR was $1,700.00!
Such silly creatures, we Humans!
“I wont even go out on the water unless I see a Tiki bar full of priests on the lake! :)”
Excellent advise whether on Land or Sea! ;)
LOL!!
I guess you don’t go out on the lake very often?
What are the odds???
Glad they were in this guy’s favor.
Great story :-)
Great story. Reaffirmation of Faith can be seen
anywhere by anyone! What a wonderful world we’ve
been given.
Thank you for a bright beginning to this Sunday
morning.
When I would take the kids to an amusement park, with rides you can get wet in, I always took a few small ziploc bags to put my phone, car keys, and wallet into.
Summer nights in the Adirondacks are cool even after a hot day; beautiful country up there, but more to visit than live year-round. The area near Woodstock was nice for backpacking.
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