On Thursday, November 7 at 2:51 p.m., during the first-ever Tiger-Cub Program meeting, a woman crashed a car on Orange Grove, directly across the street from Ranney Court. Coach Allison Clark ’07, Physical Education Department Chair, wasted no time. Without hesitation, she jumped over the fence to help the woman trapped in the car.

“You could hear the tires of someone swerving out of the way,” Coach Allison said. “After the crash sound, you could see the car flipping through the air over the Ranney Court wall. So then it was like, ‘Oh, that’s not good, that’s a bad accident.’” 

The loud screech of the tires and the ensuing crash interrupted the conversations of Lower and Upper School students meeting for the Tiger-Cub Program. 

Poppy B.-H. ’28, who was at the Tiger-Cub and witnessed the crash, said, “It was crazy, because it was so chill [and] peaceful, and then a car [started] spinning.”

Lauren K. ’32, who also saw the accident, said, “I was just a little scared…and [glad] that everyone was okay.”

Coach Allison described her reaction as instinctual. She ran towards the wall and across the street to help the woman in the car. Other witnesses, Margaret Lee and Rafaela Aguirre—current Westridge parents—were nearby and, with Coach Allison, made sure that the driver was safe before the paramedics and police arrived shortly after.

Witnessing Coach Allison’s quick response and action made a lasting impression on the students. “It was really heroic of her to just immediately go and check out the situation,” said Abbie Z. ’28.

The accident left Coach Allison fatigued because of her adrenaline surge, but she was grateful that the woman was safe and that nothing traumatic happened when students were so close. “Physically, the adrenaline dump afterwards was pretty intense…but then the woman was fine,” she said, amazed at the fact that the driver walked away with minimal injuries despite the car’s airbags not deploying. “Emotionally, it’s nice to reflect back and see [that] in the moment, when something happened, I ran towards it,” she said. “It feels good knowing that.”

The incident also left an important lesson for the students and faculty present. “I hope that the kids that were there remember that you don’t have to know the person that needs help,” Coach Allison said. “You can just help if you’re able.”