To the editor:

On the morning of Dec. 16, our son and seven friends were involved in an automobile accident on Holland Road, just minutes after they began a return trip to Georgia.

The Chevrolet Tahoe they were in rolled over, but because all of the young men were wearing seat belts, they all walked away from the vehicle with only cuts and minor injuries.

Within seconds, a young lady had stopped to check on them and call 911. Within a few short minutes, fire, rescue and police personnel were on the scene.

All of the boys spoke very highly of the excellent treatment that they received and the professionalism of the emergency personnel. All eight boys were treated at Sentara Obici Hospital, and again they could not say enough good things about the excellent care they received there.

While we, along with several other parents of the boys, drove up from Georgia, we reserved a room at the Holiday Inn Express, where the boys were made to feel at home. We arrived there after midnight and received exceptionally friendly service that night and the next morning.

An event that could have been a tragedy turned into a demonstration of human compassion and helpfulness of which Suffolk should be proud.

We wish we could thank everyone involved by name but, unfortunately, we don’t have the names to do so. Instead, we would like to extend a general but very sincere thank you to the community for all that you did for our boys.

Thank you.

Mark and Linda Lawler

Macon, Ga.