Rebecca Burslem

isn't old enough to have her driver's license yet, but she may well be

the best back seat driver in Fayette County.

The 13-year-old

proved her mettle several weeks ago while riding to school in the morning

with her father, Rick, and brother Stephen. Not only did everyone survive,

but the family car made it through with barely a scratch.

When Rick passed

out behind the wheel, Rebecca leapt from the back seat and took control.

She steered the car off Ga. Highway 92, around a gas station, over a parking

curb, down an embankment and to a safe stop ... all without being able

to use the brakes.

"I knew

I had to run into something to stop," Rebecca said, and sure enough

the car struck a curb in the parking lot, causing it catch about three

seconds of air time before slowing down. "When I really started to

panic, I started praying out loud."

The odds were

against her from the get-go. She had to wrestle Rick's foot off the accelerator

with her left hand while steering the car with her right.

"I was

like, 'Jesus, help me drive this car,'" Rebecca said. "He answered

my prayer really quickly."

While she steered

the car off the road, 9-year-old Stephen served as the emergency navigator.

"I thought

we were going to run into the yellow brick building," he said.

When the family

left for Landmark Christian School minutes before the accident, Rick felt

fine. But unbeknownst to him, he had a bleeding ulcer that would eventually

cause him to pass out.

Minutes later,

Rick began to feel so bad that he called his wife, Vicki, to meet him

at a gas station and pick up the kids. Rebecca picked up on the conversation

and unbuckled her seat belt, knowing if he passed out she would have to

take action.

"He was

getting pale real quick," Rebecca said.

"My last

thought was, 'I need to put the car in park,' and I just couldn't do it,"

Rick said.

Rebecca quickly

took over and miraculously coaxed the green Ford Escape to a stop. Local

EMTs patched Rick up and took him to the hospital while Rebecca and Stephen

went on to school.

Rick stayed

several nights at Fayette Community Hospital, recovering from the loss

of between four and five pints of blood.

Days after

the incident, the family was able to appreciate and laugh at the ironies

of the situation that led to everyone's safety.

Rebecca and

Stephen normally don't ride with Rick to Landmark, where he also serves

as principal of the middle and high schools. They normally ride with older

sister Emily, who had to leave early for a study class.

"I guess

you could say calculus saved my life," Rick joked.

"Her quick

thinking really saved all their lives," noted Vicki, the proud mom.

Rick also noted

that he thought it was odd that neither Rebecca nor Stephen wanted to

ride in the front seat. Rebecca said she sat in the back because she thought

her dad was upset because they were running a little late.

In all seriousness,

though, Rebecca said the incident made her realize how precious life is.

"We need

to cherish each day," she said. "God really has a plan for us

every day and he has a purpose for you."

"I'll

never forget that he protected them," Rick said.