2nd grader gets 'turtle x-ing' signs installed in Indiana neighborhood after sweet letter to the mayor

"They need our help," Jack wrote.

ByNicole Pelletiere via logo
August 9, 2019, 4:03 AM

An Indiana boy who wrote an adorable letter to his city mayor asking for "turtle crossing" signs is now a hometown hero.

Jack Wietbrock asked West Lafayette Mayor John Dennis to consider his request, after he, his mom and brother saved a baby turtle on the road Cherry Lane.

Mom Michelle Wietbrock told "Good Morning America" that Cherry Lane is surrounded by a number of ponds and sadly, some turtle don't make it across.

"About the third time it happened, there was a baby with one of them and we helped the baby cross the road," Wietbrock said. "Once I got back in the card my son said,'I wonder if we should write a letter to the mayor.' I said, 'OK, sure!'"

PHOTO: Jack Wietbrock, 8, wrote the letter to his mayor after saving a baby turtle crossing the road in his Indiana neighborhood.
Jack Wietbrock, 8, wrote the letter to his mayor after saving a baby turtle crossing the road in his Indiana neighborhood.
Michelle Wietbrock

Dennis replied to Jack's letter, inviting him to a city meeting where they presented him with a specially designed "Turtle X-ing" sign.

PHOTO: Mom Michelle Wietbrock said she's "so proud" of Jack for standing up for his beliefs and asking the mayor to install turtle crossing signs.
Mom Michelle Wietbrock said she's "so proud" of Jack for standing up for his beliefs and asking the mayor to install turtle crossing signs.
Michelle Wietbrock

But Jack may have saved even more slow-moving reptiles since not one, but two signs were installed.

Wietbrock shared a photo of Jack and his little brother Teddy, 4, next to one of the signs writing, "This happened today and I couldn’t be more proud!"

PHOTO: Turtle crossing signs were installed in a West Lafayette, Indiana, neighborhood after Jack Wietbrock wrote a letter to Mayor John Dennis.
Turtle crossing signs were installed in a West Lafayette, Indiana, neighborhood after Jack Wietbrock wrote a letter to Mayor John Dennis.
Michelle Wietbrock

Wietbrock said the photo received some attention and Jack's story was picked up by local news outlets.

PHOTO: Jack Wietbrock lives in West Lafayette, Indiana, and wrote a letter to his mayor after saving a baby turtle crossing the road.
Jack Wietbrock lives in West Lafayette, Indiana, and wrote a letter to his mayor after saving a baby turtle crossing the road.
Michelle Wietbrock

"We hope it encourages people to make a difference," she told "GMA."