Gabe Campbell of the Springville Utah Spring Creek Stake very much looks the part of a typical 12-year-old. He plays electric guitar, attends seventh grade and frequently flashes his bright white smile beneath a head full of dark brown curls.

But Larry and Shirley Bell, members of the Church from Eureka, Utah, know that Gabe is no run-of-the-mill adolescent because earlier this year Gabe helped save their lives by following the inspiration of the Holy Ghost.

On the afternoon of July 3, the Bells were boating in Utah Lake near Provo. Around 5 p.m., their boat capsized. Enduring one- to three-foot waves, Brother Bell, 61, clung to the boat's hull after discovering his life jacket was rotten and useless. Not knowing how to swim, Sister Bell, 60, lay back in her life vest and steadily floated away from her husband.

At 6:30 p.m., Gabe and his grandfather, Brian Campbell, entered Utah Lake on jet skis. Because of windy conditions and choppy waves, Brother Campbell suggested to his grandson that they first warm up by riding around in the harbor before heading out into the middle of the lake. But Gabe felt a strong impression that they should immediately head out toward Bird Island, two miles from the harbor and near where the Bells' boat had gone down.

"I felt really, really strong about it, that we should go out there," Gabe said. "It really hit me like a ton of bricks. . . . I felt that we needed to head out there immediately."

Jens Dana

Reunion Gabe Campbell hugs Shirley Bell in early December after receiving the Boy Scout Medal of Honor. He was awarded for helping rescue Sister Bell and her husband Larry, foreground, after their boat capsized in Utah Lake on July 3.

Gabe and Brother Campbell first found Brother Bell in relatively good condition; subsequent searching turned up Sister Bell, who had floated more than a mile away from her husband and was in severe shock, trembling, nauseated and unable to move her limbs at first. But once back on shore, both Bells recovered fully.

"It's a wonderful feeling to know that you served the Lord and that you really helped save these people's lives," Gabe said. "It's a feeling like none other. It's a really tremendous feeling."

Much recognition has been bestowed on Gabe for his role in the rescue. On Dec. 4, he received the Honor Medal from the Boy Scouts of America for "unusual heroism and skill in saving or attempting to save life at considerable risk to self." The city of Springville has already declared that July 3, 2009, will be Gabe Campbell Day.

Gabe Campbell

But perhaps the most meaningful compliments to come Gabe's way have been from the Bells themselves.

"We both had really prayed and just asked for help to be sent to us," Sister Bell said. "My husband prayed that an angel would be sent to us. . . . (Gabe) is our angel. He's our angel of rescue."

For his part, Gabe knows where his inspiration came from and hopes that the youth of the Church will recognize similar experiences in their own lives.

"If I could talk to (the youth of the Church), I would probably tell them that just in daily life you've got to be aware and listen to the Holy Ghost," Gabe said. "It won't actually come out and talk to you like a person, but it touches you in a way that is so unique that you know instantly it's the Holy Ghost. I think the youth need to realize that and be aware of that and not turn it down."

NOTE: Jens Dana contributed to this article.