Ryan Pasborg accepts a certificate from Green River Mayor Pete Rust recognizing his life-saving actions when saving two people from a burning home earlier this year.
"I didn't expect any of this," Ryan Pasborg said Tuesday night.
Pasborg is credited with saving the lives of Stephanie Wadsworth and her son Weston in Jamestown earlier this year when a house fire erupted at the Wadsworth home. Pasborg was late for an early-morning shift and recalls smelling something burning before noticing the house on fire. Driving to the home, he encountered three children outside who informed him that two people were still inside the home. Pasborg entered the home twice to save the child and his mother. Later, Pasborg and his fiancée gathered money to help pay for clothing and other items the Wadsworth children lost in the blaze.
Since then, Pasborg has received recognition for his acts from multiple organizations. The Sweetwater County Sheriff's Office recently honored Pasborg for his acts during a county commissioners meeting last month. Pasborg also received an invitation to a hometown heroes event in Cheyenne later this month, where he said he will be flown in a F-15 fighter. This will be Pasborg's first time on an aircraft.
Tuesday, the Green River City Council and Rep. Mark Baker, R- Green River, honored him for his acts as well. Baker awarded him with a framed copy of a resolution passed during the legislative session recognizing Pasborg's life-saving acts, while the Council handed him a life-saving recognition certificate. The Green River Chamber of Commerce gifted him two baskets of goods donated to him by its members.
Pasborg said he still has a hard time processing the attention he's received.
"Anywhere I go, people say 'hey, you're the guy in the newspaper,'" he said.
Pasborg has since moved to Superior and has joined the town's volunteer fire department. The experience of saving people in need reignited his passion and he joined the Superior fire department shortly after moving there.
Not everything he's received from the experience has been positive. Pasborg said he suffers from PTSD from the fire, having dreams of being back inside the burning house. He said he could have sworn he smelled smoke a few nights ago, causing him to drive throughout the town to look for its source.
"PTSD is a real thing," he said.
Beyond the changes in his life and the recognition he has received, Pasborg said the most precious gift he's received from the experience is the new family he's found in the Wadsworths. Ryan said he and his family have bonded with the Wadsworths over the past few months, getting together for barbecues and other gatherings.
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