Cincinnati man awarded Carnegie Medal for Heroism for saving teen girl

CINCINNATI (WXIX) - A Cincinnati man was awarded the Carnegie Medal for Heroism after saving two teen girls while swimming off the coast of South Carolina in June 2023.

Michael Louis Lesan, a 41-year-old financial advisor, was on Edisto Beach with his family when they spotted the two girls being carried out farther from shore.

According to a release from the Carnegie Hero Fund, the oldest of the two girls was carried out to the ocean and caught in a rip current. She was also struggling with 6-foot waves and 28 mph wind gusts.

Lesan was among 17 honored by the organization, who will each receive a financial grant. The fund, which was established 120 years ago, by Andrew Carnegie, has given $45 million in one-time grants, scholarship aid, death benefits and continued assistance to awardees or surviving families.

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