Nic volunteers with Rescue Crew 911, a Venture team organized through the Boy Scouts of America. Every week Nic and more than a dozen other young men and women gather at Saint Anthony Central Hospital to practice their first aid and first responder skills–so that they'll be ready during a real emergency. "When they need to do this in a real situation, they'll do it the same as they did it here," said Chris Weaver an advisor for the Rescue Crew 911.

On weekends, the team is often putting those skills to the test at Boy Scout events. "They're just kids, but they can still fall down and hurt themselves. They can still have seizures and stuff. Anything can happen to anyone, any place any time," Nic said.

In January, the crew braved an icy weekend up on Kenosha pass to help scouts during a winter campout known as a Klondike. Rescue Crew 911's heated tent was a popular place that weekend. "In the winter we see a lot of dehydration, wrong clothing, no prepared for the negative weather. You know, it gets cold and if someone is not prepare, they're going to suffer."

In the crew's tent several scouts can warm up and enjoy a snack, before heading back into the sub zero temperatures. "They check your blood pressure and your pulse and make sure you're okay. It seems like they really know all their stuff," one scout said.

While Nic is ready to give CPR and other life saving measures, he prefers that things stay nice and quiet. "I would not want to see someone hurt, because you're here to have fun. You're not here to be taken away in an ambulance."

Much like the firefighter Nic hopes he'll one day become, he's always ready, just in case. "I expect the worse and hope for the best," Nic said.

Please join 9NEWS and College In Colorado in congratulating Nic Von Tilius a 2008 9Kid Who Cares.