“Next thing I knew, I was face to face with a black bear.”

Andrew Wisniewski was just 12 years old when he was heading to the woods to go camping in the Georgian Appalachian Mountains with his family. His dad, his stepmother and his dog Max, were with him.

While the family was setting up camp, Wisniewski said a black bear decided to approach the campsite. 

“It was standing, mouth open, with teeth sharply overhead towering over me,” said Wisniewski, freshman Bible Ministry major from Azle, Tx.

However, his dog came rushing in, chasing the bear, and Wisniewski decided he “had to do something.”

This was when he decided to grab an axe to save Max, himself and his camp.

“I was very scared at first,” but then his bravery prevailed, paying off in the long run.

“As I grabbed the axe and moved away, the bear for some reason just turned around and left.”

Now Wisniewski never has gone camping again without his trusty axe.