FAIRHOPE, Ala. — Fairhope Correctional Officer James Stewart was on Veteran’s Drive when he saw a crashed burning truck on the side of the road and its driver struggling to get free.

“His foot was stuck, and he couldn’t get out,” Stewart said. “The driver’s seat was on fire. He was screaming his lungs out.”

Stewart pulled over, ran to the passenger’s side door, reached inside and yanked the Daphne teenager clear of the flames.

“He didn’t think about himself,” Stewart’s wife, Marlene, said. “If anyone needed help, I knew he would do it.”

Stewart, 48, received a life-saving medal in August from the Fairhope Police Department for that action and a heroism award from a local chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution.

It also led to his being named this year’s “Veteran of the Year.“

I feel there are a lot of veterans who are also deserving,” said Tom Odom, last year’s honoree. “But the thing that really spurred me (to nominate him) was his heroic action.”

Stewart retired in 1995 after a 17-year career with the U.S. Air Force as a staff sergeant and crew chief on combat aircraft that saw him deployed in Desert Storm, Lebanon and Panama, he said.

He met his wife while stationed in England, where she is from. They have three sons: Daniel, 25; David, 23; and Matthew, 22.

Mayor Tim Kant presented the award at Monday’s City Council meeting.

“When he helped save 16-year-old James Brook from a burning vehicle back in June, he didn’t think twice about his own safety,” Kant said. “He just jumped in and did what he needed to do. The city of Fairhope is proud to honor him as the 2007 Veteran of the Year.”

Stewart’s wife and parents were in the audience, watching quietly.

“He went in the military right out of high school,” said his mother, Annette Thomas, who lives in Bay Minette where Stewart graduated from high school. “His first years were in Fairhope, and I guess that’s why he feels so close to it. I am very proud of him. He’s always been a loving, kind-hearted man.”

When receiving the award, Stewart talked about the place he grew up.

“When I was overseas and people learned I was from Alabama the next thing out of the mouth was if I’d ever heard of a place called Fairhope,” he said. “I was raised here. My heart’s always been here.”

After retiring from the service, Stewart and his family returned to Alabama where he took a job with the Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office as a transport officer and bailiff. He joined the Fairhope law enforcement community as a corrections officer in 2005.

He said his military experience helps him in that job.

“We’ve had a lot of vets who get off track,” he said. “My heart goes out to them for I know what they’ve been through. Because I can relate to them, I can help them by contacting the right people at the VA and other places.”

Stewart is the third Fairhope Veteran of the Year. The second was Odom, a fire safety inspector with the city, and the first was Joe Birindelli, who is the lead organizer for this year’s Veteran Day parade scheduled to take place at 2 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 10.

Stewart will have a place of honor in that parade, Birindelli said.

“I stand behind the veterans that have served our country and are still serving,” Stewart said. “I love my country. I love the flag.”

When Veteran’s Day is celebrated this year in Fairhope, American flags will line Veteran’s Drive where Stewart took the kind of action his military experience prepared him for.

“There’s no such thing as luck,” he said. “It just happened that I happened to be there at the right time that God put me there.”