Skip to content
  • Happy Health
  • Happy Mindset
  • Animal Wonders
  • About Us
    • Team
  • Subscribe
Menu
  • Happy Health
  • Happy Mindset
  • Animal Wonders
  • About Us
    • Team
  • Subscribe
HAppy News

Woman Pulls Stranger From River Then Watches Him Say I Do

Rachelle Ruffing and her family were paddleboarding on Idaho’s Snake River in 2020, trying to ease the pain of losing their beloved dog the day before, when she spotted an empty kayak pop through Pillar Falls and start to sink. What she didn’t see in that terrifying moment was Brendon Lease, a visitor from Michigan on a road trip with friends, fighting for his life underwater after his kayak capsized. Ruffing sprang into action, pulling the unconscious man from the freezing water and performing CPR until paramedics arrived, while his dangerously low body temperature actually helped preserve his brain and organs. Doctors kept Lease in the hospital for extra days to treat bacteria in his lungs from the drowning, and when he was finally released, Ruffing embraced him and told him he had something important left to do on this earth.

Five years later, Brendon Lease got married, and Rachelle Ruffing was there to celebrate the miracle she calls him, but the wedding invitation meant so much more than just witnessing a joyful occasion. Ruffing had lost her father in the same hospital where Lease was treated, watching helplessly as CPR couldn’t save him from a sudden heart attack, making her successful rescue of Brendon feel even more miraculous. Attending the wedding became a healing journey for Ruffing, who needed to see that even though tragedy exists, beautiful moments still happen and lives can be saved. The connection between the woman who saved a stranger’s life and the man who now helps her heal defies explanation, proving that sometimes helping others leads to healing yourself.

PrevPrevious12 Year Old Endures Taunts To Change Another Child’s Life
NextMessage In Bottle FOUND after 109 YEARSNext

Recent Articles

Happy News

This Stand Offers Free Grandma Advice To Strangers

December 22, 2025

When 71-year-old Nancy McClendon was asked to sit in the middle of her town square and offer wisdom to strangers, she immediately said yes, joking that she’s officially old now and what’s the use of being old if you can’t share from life experiences. McClendon, known to visitors as Grandma

Read More
Happy News

This Plant Turns Seawater Into Fuel For 28 Cents

December 22, 2025

A new seawater desalination plant in the coastal Chinese city of Rizhao has achieved what many considered impossible, producing green hydrogen fuel, with fresh water costing just 28 cents per cubic meter compared to Saudi Arabia’s 56 cents and California’s $2.20. For every 800 metric tons of seawater processed, the

Read More
Happy News

Scientists Taught Brains A New Language Using Light

December 22, 2025

Northwestern University scientists have created a wireless brain implant around the size of a postage stamp and thinner than a credit card that uses light to send information directly to the brain, bypassing natural sensory pathways in what researchers are calling a major leap for neurobiology with immense therapeutic potential.

Read More
« Previous Next »
  • Privacy Notice
  • Accessibility Notice
  • Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information
  • Unsubscribe
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
  • Privacy Notice
  • Accessibility Notice
  • Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information
  • Unsubscribe
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
Copyright © 2025 HappyNews.