Palm Beach officer who saved woman on condo roof awarded Carnegie Medal

A Palm Beach Police officer is being recognized for her heroic efforts to save the life of a woman who threatened to jump from the roof of a condominium building in June.

Sgt. Kendall Reyes received the Carnegie Medal from the Carnegie Hero Fund for her bravery in stepping forward to pull the 67-year-old woman from the edge of the five-story building at 2778 S. Ocean Blvd., the organization announced Monday.

“It was very unexpected,” said Reyes. “I was thrilled.”

Reyes found out in July that she was being considered for the award, but she did not think she would get the call that she had won.

“Being recognized by such an organization is incredible in itself,” Reyes told the Daily News Tuesday.

The Carnegie Hero Fund was established to recognize people who perform a selfless act of heroism in the United States or Canada. Since industrialist and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie founded the organization in the early 1900s, more than $40 million has been given to more than 10,000 awardees or their survivors, according to the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission.

Reyes was the only Florida resident named among the 16 recipients for the quarter.

She will receive a Carnegie Medal and "a financial grant,'' though she is not sure how much that will be. The medal will be presented during an upcoming ceremony, the details of which have not been finalized, she said.

“We try to do things on a daily basis to affect people’s lives in a positive way,” she said. “We do that because we think it’s the best for the community, in all honesty.”

Reyes was one of several Palm Beach officers called to respond on June 18 to reports of a woman in crisis who said she was going to jump from the building. Another woman was already on the roof trying to help, Reyes said.

“No one had asked her to do that. She took that upon herself,” she said. “Normally we won’t put a citizen in harm’s way, because we never know how it could escalate.”

Reyes credited the woman with creating the distraction that helped Reyes sprint 15 feet toward the woman in distress, who had sat down at the edge of the building’s roof and swung over her legs.

“At the end of the day, I never want someone to think that the only option is to take their life,” Reyes said.

While she would love to know how the woman in distress is doing now, Reyes said the department’s Behavioral Science Unit has been unable to contact her.

In addition to the other woman on the roof, Reyes said she also is grateful for the three officers who were placed around the roof and ready to spring into action if needed: Officers Michael Lane, Michael Ostrander and Taylor Molinaro.

“I’m very thankful that things turned out the way they did, and I can only wish the best for her,” Reyes said.

Police Chief Nicholas Caristo said he was extremely proud of Reyes.

“Her service was above and beyond in putting her own life at risk in an effort to save another’s,” Caristo said. “The award is well deserved. She is a stark demonstration of the quality of the town’s police officers and the level of service we aspire to provide our community.”

Reyes recently learned she will return to a position in which she previously served, as training officer for the department. “It’s very rewarding,” she said.

She hopes to continue to have an impact on Palm Beach through her work.

“When it presents itself, you know you have to act, and honestly at the end of the day I wanted to ensure she was safely removed from the roof,” Reyes said.

Her son, who was 12 when the incident happened and is now 13, watched video of Reyes’ actions from North Carolina, where he was visiting Reyes’ mother over summer break. When Reyes talked with her son, he told her he was concerned for her safety.

“Just remember, you do still have a 12-year-old you need to take care of,” he said. “You’re a mom.”

“But she was also a mom to somebody else,” Reyes told him. “They needed their mom as well.”

Help is available for people experiencing suicidal thoughts or a crisis. Call the 24-hour Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988, 211 or go to 211palmbeach.org.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Daily News: Palm Beach officer who saved woman on condo roof awarded Carnegie Medal