Profiles In Courage: Sammy Smith

Snipe · 01-24-2008, 12:47 PM

This week at Profiles in Courage we would like to take a look back at Flyer legend Sammy Smith.

In October of 2002 Sammy Smith was abducted at gunpoint from his Dayton apartment. His abductors forced him to go back into his residence and bring with him blankets, bread, and some peanut butter.

It later came out that Sammy Smith had made up the whole thing, and he admitted in court that he had abducted himself. (Though he later recanted even that).

Sammy has become a role model of sorts. When found in a bad situation, he had the courage and intestinal fortitude to abduct himself from the Dayton program. He even drove his car all the way to Texas to put as much distance between himself and the Flyers and humanly possible.

Everyone makes mistakes in life, and Sammy Smith made a grave one when he choose the Flyer program. One day he woke up in hell, (or at least Dayton) and he decided that he alone could change his destiny. His story is a story of personal empowerment that touches us all.

Dayton is the only program in the nation in which one of their own players voluntarily choose to abduct themselves in an effort to get away. For this feat or courage, Sammy Smith will go down in history.

Sammy Smith, today’s Profile in Courage.