July 30, 2025

An appreciative expectant mother in Pennsylvania took to Facebook recently to thank Penelec’s Justen Smerkar, after he helped her in the aftermath of a deer-related vehicle accident, writing:

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POST FOR Franklin, Cranberry and Seneca Area:

I just wanted to reach out and say THANK YOU to the younger gentleman driving for Penelec who stopped last night to help me after I hit a deer on route 322 coming from work at 10:30 p.m.! I am currently nine months pregnant and have never hit a deer before and wasn’t quite sure what to do, or IF I could do anything. He popped the front end of my car out and away from my tire, went back to see if he could find the deer for me and helped me take pictures of the damage to my vehicle. I’m so thankful that someone cared enough to stop and help. I’m not sure who he is, but if I did, I’d be calling Penelec today to let them know they have an above and beyond employee!

Description: Reddish hair, beard, maybe late 20s-early 30s.

Thank you again!!

Sarah Rembold-Carulli

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Though she didn’t initially know her helper’s name, thanks to the reach of the internet, her message of gratitude eventually reached Justen.

Luckily for Sarah, the Oil City Troubleman was driving to a job site that same evening when he saw her car stopped by the side of the road with its hazard lights flashing.

“I thought it was a bad area to stop in, so I pulled up next to the vehicle and asked the driver if she was okay,” said Justen.

When Sarah explained she had hit a deer, Justen stopped, flipped his vehicle’s stream lights on and examined her car. Seeing the front bumper was damaged, he pushed it back into place allowing the front tire to turn unobstructed. Following his assistance, Sarah was able to safely operate her vehicle again and drive herself home.

The woman’s car before and after Justen’s assistance.

Justen says he’s just happy to help others out whenever he can – and hopes, if the tables were turned, someone would do the same for him.

“This is a very commendable and admirable thing that Justin did,” said Jim Thomas, Supervisor, Regional Operations Line and Substation. “As you can tell from this woman’s post, she was very appreciative of his actions and compassion as a young expectant mother in a time of need.”