Coplay Borough Council's Aug. 5 workshop meeting was a celebration of sorts.

Council awarded a certificate of recognition and a $25 gift card to Gabe Lamm, 16, for saving the life of a 5-year-old boy at the Coplay pool June 22.

Councilman Steve Burker, chairman of the borough's parks and recreation committee which oversees the pool, presented the certificate, signed by all members of council, thanking Lamm for his actions.

"Our thanks and our gratitude is extended to you," Burker said.

"It's a pleasure to see this young man here. And congratulations. That will stick with you forever," said councilman Charles Sodl. "Sometimes youngsters don't behave in the best way but here one did. I think we're very fortunate."

"He did a good job and we're proud to have him on our team," Burker said.

After the meeting, Lamm told The Press what happened that day.

As the only lifeguard on duty, he was scanning what was going on when a splash to his left caught his attention. He looked over toward the deep end of the pool and realized a young boy had jumped off the diving board and was unable to swim.

"I saw the kid was, like, actually drowning," Lamm said.

Lamm blew his whistle to let everyone in the pool know the emergency situation existed, grabbed the recue tube from his lifeguard chair and jumped into the water.

"When I got him, I just told him, 'Relax, I got you. Take deep breaths. Everything is going to be OK,'" Lamm said.

He described the boy, later identified as a 5-year-old Allentown resident, as "a little scared" but "not going crazy."

Lamm brought the boy over to the ladder so he could safely get out of the pool.

Pool Manager Jocelyn Wedge said she was in the office doing paperwork when the incident took place.

"[Lamm] comes in and says, 'I just saved somebody. I got to write up a report,'" she said.

After the meeting, Burker said Lamm's actions are a good reflection on Coplay.

By expressing appreciation, council helps Lamm set a good example for others.

"People can say that's [saving a pool patron from drowning] part of his job," Burker said. "Yeah, it is. But he went above and beyond. Without him a kid might have drowned."

Lamm's parents, Joseph and Daad, said they found out about the rescue from their son.

"Knowing him, I wasn't surprised that he did it," said Joseph Lamm. "He's a conscientious kid and he throws himself 100 percent into anything he does."

Saying he is grateful the 5-year-old is OK, the elder Lamm said he's "extremely, extremely proud" of his son.

His mother agreed.

"If he does something, he does it from all his heart. I love him so much and I'm so proud of him," Daad Lamm said.

This is Lamm's first summer as a lifeguard at the Coplay pool.

"I've been going there since I was very young. I always looked up to the lifeguards. I thought they were the coolest people," Lamm said.

He will start his junior year at Whitehall High School later this month. During his sophomore year, he took a class to become certified in CPR and first aid and meet other requirements needed to become a lifeguard.

Lamm also runs cross country and track and plays baseball.

"He doesn't let his sports interfere with his job," said Wedge, commending him for working "split shifts" at the pool so that he doesn't have to miss practice.