Slain EMT Nominated for Carnegie Hero Award

In his own quiet way, Paul Frontiero III lived the life of a hero every day, serving the public as an EMT, and volunteering his services as a medical missionary in the Dominican Republic.

Two years after his violent stabbing death just outside his Spruce Street home, Frontiero's name has been added to a short list of nominees for the Carnegie Hero Fund Medal, a prestigious award given out to those "who knowingly risk his or her own life to an extraordinary degree while saving or attempting to save the life of another person."

Frontiero, 27, was killed after suffering a stab wound to the heart in the act of trying to save two women who were being attacked by Matthew Packer. Packer was sentenced earlier this year to serve 52 years in prison for the October 2011 murder. 

Last week Walter Rutkowski executive director of the Pittsburgh-based Carnegie Hero Fund Commission, confirmed that Frontiero is being considered for the posthumous award, which includes a medal and a minimum financial grant of $5,000 t be given to his family, should he be selected.

Frontiero's dad, Paul Frontiero Jr., said he was contacted by a representative of the Carnegie award last year and was asked to provide some basic information. Since then, they've asked for more records, including medical and police reports.

According to the Carnegie website, the tradition of honoring heroes is more than a century old, begun by Andrew Carnegie himself, who wrote: 

"We live in a heroic age. Not seldom are we thrilled by deeds of heroism where men or women are injured or lose their lives in attempting to preserve or rescue their fellows; such the heroes of civilization. The heroes of barbarism maimed or killed theirs.

I have long felt that the heroes and those dependent upon them should be freed from pecuniary cares resulting from their heroism, and, as a fund for this purpose, I have transferred to the Commission five million dollars of First Collateral Five Per Cent."

Rutkowski explained that the medal is given after careful consideration to those who risk their lives "to an extraordinary degree" while saving or attempting to save the lives of others.

Now in its 110th year, the Carnegie Fund has distributed more than $35.6 million in one-time grants, scholarship aid, death benefits, and continuing assistance.

Rutkowski said there is no deadline for determination of awards, and there is not automatically a ceremony.

"But we'll work with a local group interested in making a presentation, if they'd like to do that," Rutkowski said.