A little over a month ago Peachtree City resident Matt Warmerdam marked a rather auspicious anniversary.

On Aug. 21, 1995, ASA Flight 529 from Atlanta to Gulfport, Miss., crashed in a hay field in Carroll County. Warmerdam, the copilot of that flight, was one of 19 survivors. Though he was severely burned and had to have parts of his fingers amputated, Warmerdam was able to be a pilot again. His courageous attitude during his recovery is one of the reasons he was recently honored by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons at their meeting in Chicago with one of their "Patients of Courage: Triumph Over Adversity" awards.

The crash occurred because a propeller blade broke off the plane's left engine. Warmerdam radioed in what had happened and the tower told the flight crew to turn around and try to make it