Minnesota State Patrol ceremony honors troopers, good Samaritans who saved lives of fellow citizens

The last thing Sam Orbovich remembers before his SUV crashed and burst into flames was a black car speeding to his left.

Orbovich, 72, swerved, careening his SUV over a curb and into a guardrail along Interstate 94 in St. Paul. Airbags knocked him unconscious. Shattered glass woke him moments later as a state worker and other good Samaritans broke a window to pull him to safety.

Bruised but breathing, Orbovich said he owes his life to those who saved him last April. That’s why he and officials from across the state gathered to praise their heroic actions of others during a State Patrol award ceremony Thursday.

More than 100 people attended the ceremony at the Mendakota Country Club in Mendota Heights to honor troopers, residents, and public servants for heroic acts in the past year. Many attendees laughed and shared memories with family and friends nearby. They fell silent as the honor guard marched toward the front to present the state’s and nation’s flags.

“We hope these awards serve as a token of our appreciation for your dedication to safety,” State Patrol Chief Christina Bogojevic said. “Each award presented today not only reflects the achievements of these individuals, but the collective strength of our agency and the entire state.”

“It struck me that all of you, especially those of you who are here today, make the extraordinary look ordinary. It’s just what you do day in and day out,” said Department of Public Safety Commissioner Bob Jacobson.

The ceremony marked the end of State Patrol Lt. Kevin Skalsky’s career, closing 28 years of service.

“If it’s anything I know about leadership ... it’s that it’s very important for leaders to lead from the front, and lead by example,” Skalsky said. “I hope that at some point people will look back at my career and say that I was one of those people.”

The event also marked new beginnings for Technical Sgt. Kyle Backer, who earned the Trooper of the Year award for case work and service that, Bogojevic said, show Backer is “the future of our agency.”

While waiting to recognize Kadir Tolla and others who rescued him that April, Orbovich was amazed by how attendees shared similar stories to his. Gary Bjorlin was honored for attempting to rescue a man from a burning vehicle after it struck a light pole and caught fire along interstate 494. Citizen Jamaal Johnson warned authorities of an injured man lying in traffic, helping to save him from grave injury. And Lt. Mike Gensmer and trooper Nick Brown were honored for helping a man who threatened to harm himself from a bridge sign above Hwy. 62.

For Orbovich, Thursday marked a reunion with strangers-turned-friends. Orbovich said they last met in May at Nina’s Coffee Cafe in St. Paul where he thanked them for saving his life, but they messaged each other during Christmas and remain close after the incident. He hopes to find others who helped to save him that day. But after the accident, and retirement months afterward, Orbovich feels like “the luckiest guy on the face of the earth.”

“None of them think of themselves as a hero, but they were,” Orbovich said, speaking of their persistence as video showed fire and explosions consume his SUV. “I’ve said many times if you got to get stuck and trapped in a burning car, do it in Minnesota. Because somebody’s going to stop and get you out.”