Levittown Teen Helped Rescue Boys Who Fell Through Ice On Pond

A Levittown teenager helped rescue a group of younger boys who fell through the ice on picturesque Lake Afton in Yardley Borough.

Cory Hemberger, of Middletown Township’s Levittown section, and his buddy Shawn Miller, of Philadelphia, hit the mostly frozen lake Sunday afternoon following a hockey game. The two hockey players were getting ready to head out when they noticed a younger teen who was playing with a basketball had fallen through thin ice and into the frigid water. And then another other boy fell in.

Cory and Shawn came to the aid of the 13-year-old boys as they struggled in the cold water.

Cory carefully maneuvered around the hole in the ice and put out his hockey stick to help they boys, yanking them out.

“I told them to grab on my stick and pulled them up,” he said.

Tim Miller, Shawn’s dad, was with the teens at the lake and saw the incident happen. He dialed 9-1-1 to report the boys fell through the ice.

Shawn Miller said everything happen so quickly.

The fast actions of the teens led to the boys quickly getting out of the water and suffering no injuries.

Police and medics took over after the boys were out of the water, and the heroic teens headed home.

Tim and Shawn Miller said the gravity of what happened didn’t set into until they got home.

Lisa Hemberger, Cory’s mom, said her son only told her he helped some kids on the ice and didn’t mention more.

“He said: ‘hey mom, I helped some kids on the ice,’” she recalled. “And that was it.”

Later, she was cruising Facebook when she saw a social media post explaining the rescue and noting one of the rescuers had long blond hair.

At that moment, she realized Cory, who attends Neshaminy High School, was involved in saving the boys from the lake.

Lisa Hemberger and her husband, Andrew, both said they were extremely proud of their son for his actions.

“That’s my kid,” Cory’s mom said proudly.

Tim Miller expressed the same feelings about his son.

“If I was in that situation, I would want someone to help me,” Cory said. “It makes me feel good.”

The family of the boys who were rescued have been in contact and hope to arrange a meeting between the boys soon.

Lake Afton is a man-formed lake that dates back to the 1700s. It is commonly used for skating once the majority of the ice freezes thick enough to support people. However, it is not uncommon for parts of the lake to remain unfrozen in the winter.

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