TURNERS FALLS — Kids hear it constantly: “Pay attention in school.”

Not always, however, is the topic a matter of life or death in the way it could have been for 11-year-old Jayden Weber.

Jayden was awarded the state’s Student Awareness of Fire Education (S.A.F.E.) Young Hero award on Monday for preventing a potentially devastating fire at his family home on April 16.

According to his mother Donna Weber, Jayden was home while the rest of his family was out walking their dogs. Suddenly, the house’s smoke alarms went off. When Jayden went downstairs, he found the lower level to be full of smoke, which was caused by his father accidentally leaving a chicken on the stove on “high.”

“I felt like everything was going wrong and my house was going to burn down,” Jayden recalled.

He then made the quick decision to grab the phone, exit the building and call 911. Jayden said while he was worried about his home and his cat, he knew what he had to do from his “parents and school training stuff.”

“To know that somebody actually listened to me in the school … and took that to heart … is heartwarming to us, that we were able to save you from maybe getting into an area you shouldn’t have,” said Turners Falls Fire Capt. Luke Hartnett, who has been tasked with educating schoolchildren on fire safety.

“Thankfully, you stayed home and didn’t go for the walk because what would have happened if you would’ve been out on the walk with your family? The house could’ve been up in smoke,” said Deputy State Fire Marshal Maribel Fournier, who presented Jayden with his S.A.F.E. Young Hero award during Monday evening’s ceremony.

Fournier advised Jayden to take good care of his award, noting its prestige and projecting that “someday, this could be worth a lot of money.”

“Think of all the kids who live in Massachusetts,” she said. “You’re one of 300 that have done this and saved families and saved your home, so you should be very proud.”

Jayden said it “feels really good” to be recognized. His face lit up even brighter, though, when he was presented with cake and gifts, including a Dungeons & Dragons gaming set.

“It’s important to know that when you do the right thing,” Donna Weber said, “you get good consequences from it.”

Reach Julian Mendoza at 413-930-4231 or jmendoza@recorder.com.

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