Medal of Bravery

• Awarded on: August 27, 1998
• Invested on: May 10, 1999

On March 12, 1997, James Moggy saved two friends from the freezing waters of Georgian Bay, near Wikwemikong, Ontario. Each driving a snowmobile, Mr. Moggy and two friends had become disoriented while travelling through a night snowstorm, when one friend's snowmobile ran out of gas and had to be towed by another. Mr. Moggy followed behind. As he went over a pressure crack, he discovered his friends in the open water, desperately clinging to the edge of the ice. He immediately rushed to their rescue, crawling some 20 metres on the thin surface until he managed to grab one victim by the hands. Unable to keep a grip on the man's frozen limbs, he reached behind him, grabbed him by his jacket and dragged him out of the water. He then turned to the woman and, despite her struggle, was able to pull her out.