‘God, Give Me the Strength’

Dec. 1, 2025

Guided by faith and presence of mind, a Knight rescues a man from a burning vehicle

By Michael Stechschulte

Dec. 1, 2025

Adam Parzuchowski, 21, stands at the site where he rescued a man from a burning vehicle in June. (Photo by Justin Wan)

As he headed to work in the early morning hours of Sunday, June 22, outside Howell, Michigan, Adam Parzuchowski had no idea he was about to become someone’s “angel.”

But after the 21-year-old Knight from Deerfield Township pulled an unconscious young man from a burning truck moments before it was engulfed in flames, the timing seemed nothing short of divine intervention.

“If it had been another 30 to 60 seconds, this would have been a very sad story and a tragic situation,” said Adam’s father, John Parzuchowski, reflecting on his son’s heroic rescue of a mid-Michigan man whose truck had crashed into a tree that day.

John, who along with Adam and his two other sons is a member of St. Augustine Council 13450 in Deerfield Township, added, “The fact that Adam happened to be going to work and running a few minutes late … I believe God had a hand, and some angel was watching out for that young man.”

The dramatic rescue didn’t make national news — it was shared only on a local radio station — but John believes his son’s bravery is a testament to both Christian duty and divine providence.

After all, one could argue that Adam, an Eagle Scout and a member of the Knights of Columbus since the week of his 18th birthday, was uniquely prepared to save the life of a driver trapped behind the wheel of a burning pickup.

“In the Boy Scouts, you’re taught leadership and how to take care of what needs to be done,” John said. “With the Knights, he’s seen examples time and time again: Serve without looking for anything in return. I believe Adam simply did what needed to be done.”

Equipped with the right knowledge, tools and temperament — and a prayer for protection — Adam sprang into action and today credits God’s grace for the fact that both he and the man whose life he saved were unharmed.

QUICK THINKING

He almost didn’t notice the truck.

Driving eastbound on Clyde Road near Howell — a rural community northwest of Detroit — just after 5:15 a.m., Adam Parzuchowski slowed down when he came upon a large fallen tree on the road. A strong windstorm had kicked up the night before, so Adam didn’t think much of it and swerved to go around the obstacle.

As he began driving away, something caught the corner of his eye in the rearview mirror: taillights — and smoke.

“And then I realized it wasn’t just a tree that fell,” Adam recalled. “It was someone who had crashed.”

He rolled down his window and tried calling for the driver, but received no reply. Getting out of his vehicle, he quickly discovered the man — a 21-year-old who had been returning from a late-night work shift — unconscious and slumped into his deployed airbag. The door was locked.

As smoke began to rise in the early dawn light, Adam noticed an orange glow flickering beneath the white pickup’s engine bay. He knew he had only moments to act.

The scene of the accident after Adam Parzuchowski pulled the driver to safety and the truck burst into flames. — A cellphone image shows the scene of the accident outside Howell, Mich., after Adam Parzuchowski pulled the driver to safety and the truck burst into flames. (Screenshot courtesy of Adam Parzuchowski)

“I prayed in the beginning for God to give me the strength to know what to do — and the time,” Adam said. “I prayed through the entire event.”

Leaping into action, he quickly called 911 and tried unsuccessfully to open the man’s door. Suddenly, he remembered a tool in his own vehicle — one he kept specifically for just such an emergency.

“Everything was getting brighter and brighter,” Adam said. “So I ran back to my truck for a glass breaker that my mom had given all of us when we turned 16. I grabbed that and ran back to the vehicle, and then I broke his window, reached in and unlocked the door.”

Using the same tool, Adam cut the man from his seatbelt and pulled him from the truck — just in the nick of time.

“He was in and out of consciousness. I dragged him backward, and by about the time I did that, the flames were over the fenders,” Adam recalled. “I dragged him back to my truck, and by that point he had started to wake up.”

Adam remained with the man until emergency responders arrived, and then left to resume his commute to work.

ROOTED IN BROTHERHOOD

In the weeks and months after the rescue, Adam has shied from any implication that he’s a hero. But that doesn’t stop his friends and family from beaming with pride.

“When I heard about his courageous actions, I was speechless,” said David Parzuchowski, Adam’s oldest brother and deputy grand knight of Council 13450. “Pulling that man from the vehicle was heroic, and I’m extremely proud to be his brother.”

After his original shock wore off, however, David said he’s not at all surprised that Adam remained calm and composed under pressure.

“I just remembered all the training we did when we were growing up as Boy Scouts, and this is what the Boy Scouts and the Knights are all about,” David said. Still, he admitted, “I don’t know if I would have been able to do what Adam did in that situation.”

Growing up, Adam, David and their two other siblings — a brother, Jack, and sister, Sally — were always active outdoors.

“It was a ruckus at times,” David said with a laugh. “Going on campouts up north, hiking, canoe trips — it was all of these things that culminated in this bravery and gave him all the tools he needed.”

John Parzuchowski, who has been a Knight since 2010, agreed that his son’s heroism was not out of character.

“Adam is the fourth of my four children, and his brothers are both Eagle Scouts with him,” he said. “He has always been adventurous, and he’s got the biggest heart — he’s the one who would always come up quietly and give you a hug when you needed one the most.”

“I don’t think Adam thought he was putting his life on the line … That’s just what we do in the Knights and in our Church. Somebody was in need — and he took care of it.”

The attention his son has received since the incident, John added, has been a bit overwhelming for the normally quiet young man.

“People were sending him messages of congratulations, but he was very reserved about it. He didn’t want the publicity,” he said. “I don’t think Adam thought he was putting his life on the line … That’s just what we do in the Knights and in our Church. Somebody was in need — and he took care of it.”

WHAT A KNIGHT SHOULD DO

The Parzuchowskis can often be found volunteering at St. Augustine Parish events and around the community.

According to Grand Knight Paul Bokuniewicz, the family is a fixture at barbecues, Polish dinners and fish fries, and the younger men recently helped organize a hayride for children and families.

“They’re very involved in our church,” Bokuniewicz said. “It’s good to have an injection of young energy, young men in our council — especially because when you have a hayride, you need to move 100 bales of hay!”

Members of St. Augustine Council 13450 gather in their parish church. Adam Parzuchowski stands to the right of his father, John, and his brother David, the council’s deputy grand knight, as John holds a photo of his son Jack, who is also a member of the council and currently serving in the U.S. Air Force. (Photo by Emily Elconin)

Giving one’s time at a barbecue or hayride is one thing, Bokuniewicz said. Rescuing a man from a burning vehicle is another.

“What Adam did, that’s walking the walk, putting his faith into action,” he said. “We were all deeply moved, humbled and very proud.”

Adam’s actions, Bokuniewicz added, showcase the best of what it means to be a member of the Knights of Columbus.

“Saving another man’s life, reaching out to a brother — it’s all part of the main principles of what the Order is all about,” Bokuniewicz said. “Charity in offering and putting his life in front of another; unity in recognizing the shared dignity of each other’s lives; and the fraternity of reaching out to a brother in need. He was the Good Samaritan that day.”

For his part, Adam insists he was simply doing what any Christian man — especially a Knight — would do. And he firmly believes it was God who put him in a position to help when someone needed it most.

“I do believe God put me there that morning, at that time, because normally we don’t work a lot of Sundays,” Adam said. “If we did, we’d usually start later in the day. I started earlier that day, and that put me there to save his life.”

After the paramedics arrived and Adam drove away, he tried to call his boss to explain why he’d be late — but accidentally dialed his father instead. When the initial shock and relief subsided, John Parzuchowski hung up the phone, overwhelmed with pride.

“I actually started to cry,” he recalled, “because I realized what my son had done.

*****

MICHAEL STECHSCHULTE is editor-in-chief of Detroit Catholic, the digital news service of the Archdiocese of Detroit.

Chisholm, a Knight since 1960, sits at his home in Osage, Iowa. (Photo by Spirit Juice Studios)

‘God, Give Me the Strength’

QUICK THINKING

ROOTED IN BROTHERHOOD

WHAT A KNIGHT SHOULD DO

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