A Minneapolis woman is being recognized with a national lifesaving award after rescuing a toddler who slipped into Bde Maka Ska last Mother’s Day.

Karmen Black, a licensed social worker and Minneapolis resident, received the Heroic Act Award from the United States Lifesaving Association on Monday during a ceremony at Minneapolis Fire Station 5. The award is the highest honor the organization gives to a bystander who is not a lifeguard or first responder.

The rescue happened while Black was walking around the lake with a friend.

“I love walking the lake,” Black said. “We had went around once, and then I convinced my friend to, ‘let’s go around a second time.’”

During the second lap, Black noticed a man walking ahead with his children. One child, she said, was trailing far behind.

“There was a third child lagging behind. I would say, like 30 yards behind him,” Black said. “And I said, ‘Gosh, he’s pretty far behind his father, especially to be so close to the lake.”

Moments later, the situation escalated.

“The little boy turned,” Black said. “He literally turned and saw the water. Eyes lit up, and I said to my friend, ‘No, he’s not going to.’ And he a-lined to the lake and just threw himself.”

Black said the location made the situation especially dangerous.

“If the father would have turned and looked down the path, just because of the way of the incline going down to the lake, he would have never known his son was literally over the edge, drowning,” she said.

Black ran into the water fully clothed and pulled the child out. The boy was reunited with his father moments later and was not seriously hurt.

Minneapolis Interim Fire Chief Melanie Rucker said Black’s quick action prevented a much more serious emergency.

“With Carmen’s quick thinking and reaction, that saved a life,” Rucker said. “That saved a rescue that we didn’t even have to respond to.”

Dr. Ayanna Rakhu, founder of Sankofa Swim International, presented the award and said the rescue highlights how quickly drowning incidents can happen.

“Drowning happens quickly and it happens silently,” Rakhu said. “Awareness is a big thing.”

Rakhu said the incident underscores the importance of swim education not just for children, but for adults as well.

“It’s important for kids and adults, and parents and aunts and uncles to learn how to swim,” she said. “Because we end up in these situations.”

Black said the experience stayed with her long after the rescue.

“I was traumatized for like a month,” she said, adding that she goes to the lakes almost every day in the summer.

Despite the national recognition, Black said she does not see herself as extraordinary.

“I just feel like this should be normal,” she said. “You would hope that this is just what anybody would do.”

Sixteen years of commuting came to a close on Sunday afternoon. 

The Northstar Commuter Rail made its final ride after the Vikings-Packers game to get fans home safely to the northern Twin Cities suburbs.

“Last time I was on it, people were so sad. So many people were sad this was not going to continue,” Patty Fernandez, a regular Northstar rider, said.

It was Meghan Gause’s first time taking the Northstar line to a Vikings game from Coon Rapids, and she’s disappointed it won’t be an option going forward. 

“I think it’s kind of crazy because it’s really convenient for people to take this and not drive through the traffic along with all the other people,” Gause said. 

As a Vikings season ticket holder, Fernandez captured the grand finale departure with her granddaughter.

“This is the only way I get to the games. If it’s not with my son, it’s the train,” Fernandez said.

The Northstar first launched in 2009 as a 40-mile-long rail line between Target Field in downtown Minneapolis to Big Lake with stops throughout the northern suburbs. 

In 2018, annual ridership peaked at more than 780,000 passengers. There was a dramatic drop during the pandemic, with an all-time low of just over 50,000 riders in 2021. That number didn’t improve enough in 2024 (approx. 127,000 riders) and 2025 (approx. 113,400 riders) to keep operating efficiently.

“The subsidy, or what it costs us to support each one of the rides, was more recently over $100 per rider,” said Brian Funk, the chief operating officer for Metro Transit. 

Funk says plans for the future of this infrastructure are still being determined, but they will work with the Minnesota Department of Transportation and BNSF Railway over the next year to figure out what parts can be repurposed.

“We’re going to hold onto this, at least for the short term,” Funk said. “It’s a great location right next to the ballpark.”

In the meantime, public transit riders are left to rely on bus routes to downtown. 

“I have to. I will not drive over here, it’s ridiculous and the parking is ridiculous,” Fernandez said.